a custom that was once prevalent here
Those teaching methods are still prevalent at some schools.
a fashion that is prevalent among teenagers
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'prevalent.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Many diseases that were prevalent a century ago have been controlled by advances in medicine. Smallpox was prevalent on several continents for many centuries, and when Europeans brought it with them to the Americas, it killed more American Indians than the armed settlers did. But prevalent doesn't just describe diseases. One ideal of male or female beauty may be prevalent in a particular society and quite a different ideal in another. In the 1950s and '60s, there was a prevalent notion that if you went swimming less than an hour after eating you might drown because of stomach cramps—which goes to show that not every prevalent idea is exactly true.
First Known Use: 15th century
in the meaning defined at sense 1
See Words from the same yearconventional, current, customary, going, popular, prevailing, standard, stock, usual;
average, common, everyday, normal, ordinary;
epidemic, ubiquitous, universal, widespread;
fashionable, in, modish, stylish;
: accepted, done, or happening often or over a large area at a particular time : common or widespread
Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for prevalent Spanish Central: Translation of prevalent Nglish: Translation of prevalent for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of prevalent for Arabic speakers
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