dominant

adjective

dom·i·nant | \ ˈdä-mə-nənt

, ˈdäm-nənt\

Definition of dominant

(Entry 1 of 2)

1a : commanding, controlling, or prevailing over all others the dominant culture

b : very important, powerful, or successful a dominant theme a dominant industry the team's dominant performance

2 : overlooking and commanding from a superior position a dominant hill

3 : of, relating to, or exerting ecological or genetic dominance dominant genes dominant and recessive traits

4 biology : being the one of a pair of bodily structures that is the more effective or predominant in action dominant eye used her dominant hand

dominant

noun

Definition of dominant (Entry 2 of 2)

1 music : the fifth tone of a major or minor scale (see scale entry 6 sense 2)

2a genetics : a character or factor that exerts genetic dominance (see dominance sense 1b)

b ecology : any of one or more kinds of organism (such as a species) in an ecological community that exerts a controlling influence on the environment and thereby largely determines what other kinds of organisms are present dominant conifers

c sociology : an individual having a controlling, prevailing, or powerful position in a social hierarchy : a dominant (see dominant entry 1 sense 1) individual in a social hierarchy

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Choose the Right Synonym for dominant

Adjective

dominant, predominant, paramount, preponderant mean superior to all others in influence or importance. dominant applies to something that is uppermost because ruling or controlling. a dominant social class predominant applies to something that exerts, often temporarily, the most marked influence. a predominant emotion paramount implies supremacy in importance, rank, or jurisdiction. unemployment was the paramount issue in the campaign preponderant applies to an element or factor that outweighs all others in influence or effect. preponderant evidence in her favor

Examples of dominant in a Sentence

Adjective

The company is now dominant in its market. It is the dominant culture in the region. the dominant female of the pack

Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective

And last year's first-round pick Grayson Rodriguez, has been dominant this season. — Jon Meoli, baltimoresun.com, "Orioles' productive first day of MLB draft shows club drafted its most dire need: talent," 4 June 2019 Luca and Cherri’s stories are disrupting dominant narratives that veil existing colonial power structures and wealth inequality. — Mary Lovell, Teen Vogue, "Bayou Bridge Pipeline Meets Resistance from the L’eau Est La Vie Camp," 16 Oct. 2018 And as this happened, fly over America felt demeaned by the dominant culture, which came to see them as backwater, intolerant, and yes, even racist. — Fox News, "Kellyanne Conway: Not sure media is relevant, consequential," 3 Aug. 2018 Her removal had been ordered under an Australian assimilation policy that sought to absorb Aboriginal people into the country’s white society by taking children from their families and indoctrinating them in the ways of that dominant culture. — Jacqueline Williams, BostonGlobe.com, "Daisy Kadibil, whose Australia trek inspired a film, dies at 95," 29 June 2018 The dominant culture today is tribalism and bitter partisanship. — Amanda Paulson, The Christian Science Monitor, "Why these young Republicans see hope in climate action," 28 June 2018 Dembele enjoyed yet another impressive season in Scotland, scoring 16 goals in all competitions and helping Celtic secure yet another domestic treble, showing just how dominant the Bhoys have become in recent years. — SI.com, "Crystal Palace Monitoring Situation of Celtic Striker Amidst Increased Transfer Speculation," 20 June 2018 While not all Americans understand and welcome immigration, a lot of the anger towards immigrants could be resolved if it wasn’t presented as a zero sum game where dominant culture loses every time an immigrant is granted entry. — Thomas Harlander, Los Angeles Magazine, "Eddie Huang’s Immigrant-Focused Food Show Can’t Come Soon Enough," 20 June 2018 Are there black women out there that straighten their hair or rock extensions in order to fit in with the dominant culture and avoid controversy? — Shammara Lawrence, Allure, "Why Frontal Queen Porscha Weeks's Side-by-Side Photos Sparked a Debate About Black Hair," 25 May 2018

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

The running game still hasn’t found a dominant back since Lynch left. — Jarrett Bell, USA TODAY, "Richard Sherman's release signals end of an era for Seattle Seahawks," 9 Mar. 2018 Knowing that, the non-dominant is always paying attention to those in power and what is going on around them. — Kellee Terrell, Harper's BAZAAR, "Jen McGowan's Feminist Horror Rust Creek Is Exactly What Hollywood Needs Right Now," 22 Jan. 2019 Its once-dominant Hepatitis C franchise, which turned Gilead into one of the most important drug companies in the world earlier this decade, is now in decline. — Charley Grant, WSJ, "Gilead Looks Outside to Revive Growth," 10 Dec. 2018 As the first half progressed, and with England dominant, the opportunity was there to put the game away. — Martin Rogers, USA TODAY, "Croatia tops England in extra time to reach World Cup final," 11 July 2018 High pressure remaining dominant also means clouds should be few and far between. — Ian Livingston, Washington Post, "D.C.-area forecast: Seasonable warmth of today trends to potentially dangerous heat by Monday," 16 June 2018 The Mavericks have the ball-dominant Dennis Smith in place, and the possibility of pairing him with Ayton, Bagley or Jaren Jackson Jr. somewhere in this range is tantalizing. — Jeremy Woo, SI.com, "2018 NBA Draft Lottery Guide: What Are Your Team's Chances?," 14 May 2018 Though once dominant in the classroom, Apple has slipped behind Google and Microsoft in recent years, which sell lower cost tablets and laptops that better fit tight school budgets. — Edward C. Baig, USA TODAY, "Apple unveils new $299 iPad for students--supports AR, Apple Pencil," 27 Mar. 2018 Early in January, the previous version of this team went through growing pains trying to integrate ball-dominant Isaiah Thomas. — Chris Fedor, cleveland.com, "LeBron James splits defenders with fancy behind-the-back dribble through Tristan Thompson's legs (video)," 2 Mar. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'dominant.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.