prevalence

noun

prev·​a·​lence ˈpre-və-lən(t)s 

ˈprev-lən(t)s

1

: the quality or state of being prevalent

2

: the degree to which something is prevalent

especially : the percentage of a population that is affected with a particular disease at a given time

Synonyms of prevalence

• frequency
• occurrence
• frequence

Examples of prevalence in a Sentence

the prevalence of rumors when hard information is withheld from the public

Recent Examples on the Web

The post also detailed Ticketmaster’s analysis of The Art of Loving resale prevalence and how the refund process would work for those who were upsold. —Mankaprr Conteh, Rolling Stone, 27 Nov. 2025

The prevalence of fakes is on the rise, causing growing concern in the global battery market. —Andrew Moseman, IEEE Spectrum, 22 Nov. 2025

Obesity prevalence and availability of primary care physicians was another strong predictor. —Hannah Millington, MSNBC Newsweek, 21 Nov. 2025

Researchers noted that as smoking prevalence has declined in many countries, the biggest contributing factor to these lung cancer cases was air pollution. —Vanessa Etienne, PEOPLE, 21 Nov. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1682, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for prevalence

• benevolence
• malevolence
• seroprevalence

Kids Definition

prevalence

noun

prev·​a·​lence ˈprev(-ə)-lən(t)s 

1

: the state of being prevalent

2

: the degree to which something is prevalent

especially : the part of a population that is affected with a particular disease at a given time

Medical Definition

prevalence

noun

prev·​a·​lence ˈprev(-ə)-lən(t)s 

: the percentage of a population that is affected with a particular disease at a given time compare incidence sense 2b