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Predominant vs. Predominate
Predominant and predominate are synonymous adjectives. Predominant is the older and much more common form. A number of handbooks and commentators hold predominate to be a mistake—a few insisting that the word is only a verb. But they are wrong. As an adjective predominate is somewhat more likely to turn up in technical writing than in general writing. The adverbs predominantly and predominately are a more even match in frequency than their base adjectives are, although predominantly is still significantly more common than predominately.
Examples of predominate in a Sentence
Justin Davidson, Curbed, 5 May 2025
In the mid-twentieth century, however, liberalism began to predominate to such an extent that republicanism, and its concern with the civic consequences of economic choices, largely faded from view.
—Jennifer M. Harris, Foreign Affairs, 22 Apr. 2025
Eliot A. Cohen, Foreign Affairs, 20 Jan. 2018
The party is regrouping after 2024's election losses, with the central debate over whether Democrats should lean more or less into the progressivism that has predominated over the past few years.
—Tom Rogers, MSNBC Newsweek, 29 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for predominate
Cite this Entry
“Predominate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/predominate. Accessed 11 Jul. 2025.
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