major party

noun

: a political party having electoral strength sufficient to permit it to win control of a government usually with comparative regularity and when defeated to constitute the principal opposition to the party in power

Examples of major party in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Every election, the two major parties mobilize massive operations of attorneys, staffers and volunteers to monitor polling places and ballot counting. — Nicholas Riccardi, Arkansas Online, 15 Sep. 2026

Xi now plans to follow his state visit to Washington with a major party meeting to lay the groundwork for his fourth five-year term, which will start next year. — Jonathan A. Czin, The Atlantic, 14 Sep. 2026

The network also has characterized the equal time rule as unworkable, given that its stations may be on the hook not just for major party candidates but also third-party rivals. — Dominic Patten, Deadline, 10 Sep. 2026

Because of Germany's Nazi past, far-right movements have always come under strong scrutiny, with the other major parties maintaining a firewall against any form of cooperation. — Kirsten Grieshaber, Christian Science Monitor, 7 Sep. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1950, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for major party

• counterparty
• multiparty
• arty
• carty
• hearty
• parti
• astarte
• mccarty
• nonparty