majority

noun

ma·jor·i·ty | \ mə-ˈjȯr-ə-tē,

-ˈjär-\

plural majorities

Definition of majority

1 obsolete : the quality or state of being greater

2a : the age at which full civil rights are accorded The age of majority in the U.S. is 18.

b : the status of one who has attained this age graduated … before he had attained his majority— W. L. Burrage

3a : a number or percentage equaling more than half of a total a majority of voters a two-thirds majority

b : the excess of a majority over the remainder of the total : margin won by a majority of 10 votes

c : the greater quantity or share the majority of the time

4 : the group or political party having the greater number of votes (as in a legislature)

5 : the military office, rank, or commission of a major majorities and colonelcies were thick as June blackberries— Dixon Wecter

Other Words from majority Synonyms & Antonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about majority

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Synonyms & Antonyms for majority

Synonyms

bulk, generality, lion's share, mass, preponderance

Antonyms

minority

Examples of majority in a Sentence

A clear majority of the voters support the policy. The Republicans are currently the majority in the Senate.

Recent Examples on the Web

Although the majority of the Internet's responses to the couple's news has been positive, some weren't. — Sarah Jacoby, SELF, "Gabrielle Union on What It’s Like to Have a Baby After Multiple Miscarriages," 3 Dec. 2018 Up through the 1980s, researchers carried out the majority of CR experiments only on yeast, flies, mice and rats. — Mark Barna, Discover Magazine, "Not So Fast," 24 Sep. 2018 Eric’s fans were quick to like his retort, and continued to leave messages that prove the majority of his social media base disagrees with the negative statement. — Megan Stein, Country Living, "‘NCIS: LA’ Star Eric Christian Olsen Responds to Online Criticism," 23 Dec. 2018 As Lucy moves through the solar system, the majority of its course corrections will use what are known as gravity assists. — David Grossman, Popular Mechanics, "Inside NASA's Wildly Complex Plan to Navigate Jupiter's Asteroid Fields," 21 Dec. 2018 Four Seasons is majority-owned by a partnership of Bill Gates’s private investment firm, Cascade Investment LLC, and Kingdom Holding Co., the investment firm of Saudi Prince al-Waleed bin Talal. — Craig Karmin, WSJ, "Four Seasons CEO Is Leaving, as Search for Successor Continues," 20 Dec. 2018 Republicans have a 236-197 House majority, but only one House Republican has signed the petition. — Jon Brodkin, Ars Technica, "Net neutrality bill 38 votes short in Congress, and time has almost run out," 11 Dec. 2018 However, with Democrats set to take the House majority in 2019, the legislation has a better chance of moving forward and potentially going to a vote in the House than in the Senate. — Diana Budds, Curbed, "Elizabeth Warren doubles down on affordable housing legislation," 11 Dec. 2018 Jozsef Kantor, principal of a high school with some 700 students in Velyka Dobron, a village near Chop with a majority Hungarian population, acknowledged that a more modern education law was needed. — Pablo Gorondi, The Seattle Times, "Ukraine’s Hungarian minority threatened by new education law," 14 Nov. 2018

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

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Dictionary Entries near majority

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Last Updated

17 Jan 2019

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Time Traveler for majority

The first known use of majority was in 1552

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More Definitions for majority

majority

noun

English Language Learners Definition of majority

: a number that is greater than half of a total

: a number of votes that is more than half of the total number

: the group or party that is the greater part of a large group

See the full definition for majority in the English Language Learners Dictionary

majority

noun

ma·jor·i·ty | \ mə-ˈjȯr-ə-tē

plural majorities

Kids Definition of majority

1 : a number greater than half of a total

2 : a group or party that makes up the greater part of a whole body of people The majority chose a leader.

3 : the amount by which a number is more than half the total She won the election by a majority of 200 votes.

4 : the age at which a person has the full rights of an adult

majority

noun

ma·jor·i·ty | \ mə-ˈjȯr-ə-tē

plural majorities

Legal Definition of majority

1a : legal age

b : the status of one who has reached legal age

2a : a number or quantity greater than half of a total — compare plurality

b : the excess of a majority over the remainder of the total

3a : the group or political party whose votes predominate

b : the judges voting in a particular case who together determine the prevailing decision — see also majority opinion at opinion — compare dissent sense 3