supermajority
noun
su·per·ma·jor·i·ty
ˈsü-pər-mə-ˌjȯr-ə-tē 
-ˌjär-
plural supermajorities
: a majority (such as two-thirds or three-fifths) that is greater than a simple majority
treaty ratification requires a supermajority
Furthermore, it is about even money that soon after Congress convenes in January it will … approve a constitutional amendment to require supermajorities (three-fifths) in both houses of Congress to approve deficit spending.—
George F. Will
George F. WillThe company, for instance, has a supermajority clause in its articles of incorporation; 80% of the shareholders must approve any sale or merger.—Joshua Hyatt
Joshua Hyatt
Examples of supermajority in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
What is known on this Constitution Day is that the revolution will likely continue, expressed in Supreme Court opinions crafted by the new supermajority of conservative justices.
—Morgan Marietta, The Conversation, 13 Sep. 2023
Republicans in the veto-proof supermajority usually work in lockstep but showed a rare moment of disunity when Senate leaders wanted to push through only a handful of bills while House Republicans debated a host of other measures on mental health, school security and juvenile crime.
—Annie Gowen, Washington Post, 29 Aug. 2023
But if the Democratic ballot measure passes first in March, the initiative will require a two-thirds supermajority — probably too high a bar in a presidential election that’s bound to draw a high turnout of Democratic voters.
—George Skelton, Los Angeles Times, 28 Aug. 2023
With an overwhelming supermajority of these crews demanding an end to ‘the way VFX has always been,’ this is a clear sign that our campaign is not about one studio or corporation.
—Caitlin Huston, The Hollywood Reporter, 28 Aug. 2023
While Jones and Pearson’s reelection to their old posts won’t make a significant dent to the Republican supermajority inside the Legislature, they are expected to push back heavily against some of their GOP colleagues’ policies.
—Kimberlee Kruesi, Anchorage Daily News, 4 Aug. 2023
But weighing heavily against the Democrats’ overall advantage is that the appeals courts are still majority-Republican and, most glaringly, the Supreme Court has a Republican supermajority of 6–3.
—Timothy Noah, The New Republic, 3 Aug. 2023
The Republican supermajority in Montgomery, however, has essentially unchecked power, Ball said.
—Paul Gattis | Pgattis@al.com, al, 12 Sep. 2023
Unions cried foul, arguing that wealthy corporations were abusing the referendum system to subvert the will of a Democratic supermajority in Sacramento and deceive voters into reversing laws intended to raise up some of the state’s lowest-income workers.
—Taryn Luna, Los Angeles Times, 11 Sep. 2023
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Morgan Marietta, The Conversation, 13 Sep. 2023
Republicans in the veto-proof supermajority usually work in lockstep but showed a rare moment of disunity when Senate leaders wanted to push through only a handful of bills while House Republicans debated a host of other measures on mental health, school security and juvenile crime.
—Annie Gowen, Washington Post, 29 Aug. 2023
But if the Democratic ballot measure passes first in March, the initiative will require a two-thirds supermajority — probably too high a bar in a presidential election that’s bound to draw a high turnout of Democratic voters.
—George Skelton, Los Angeles Times, 28 Aug. 2023
With an overwhelming supermajority of these crews demanding an end to ‘the way VFX has always been,’ this is a clear sign that our campaign is not about one studio or corporation.
—Caitlin Huston, The Hollywood Reporter, 28 Aug. 2023
While Jones and Pearson’s reelection to their old posts won’t make a significant dent to the Republican supermajority inside the Legislature, they are expected to push back heavily against some of their GOP colleagues’ policies.
—Kimberlee Kruesi, Anchorage Daily News, 4 Aug. 2023
But weighing heavily against the Democrats’ overall advantage is that the appeals courts are still majority-Republican and, most glaringly, the Supreme Court has a Republican supermajority of 6–3.
—Timothy Noah, The New Republic, 3 Aug. 2023
The Republican supermajority in Montgomery, however, has essentially unchecked power, Ball said.
—Paul Gattis | Pgattis@al.com, al, 12 Sep. 2023
Unions cried foul, arguing that wealthy corporations were abusing the referendum system to subvert the will of a Democratic supermajority in Sacramento and deceive voters into reversing laws intended to raise up some of the state’s lowest-income workers.
—Taryn Luna, Los Angeles Times, 11 Sep. 2023
See More
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'supermajority.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
First Known Use
1915, in the meaning defined above
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Dictionary Entries Near supermajority
Cite this Entry
“Supermajority.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/supermajority. Accessed 1 Oct. 2023.
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Legal Definition
supermajority
noun
su·per·ma·jor·i·ty
ˈsü-pər-mə-ˌjȯr-ə-tē
: a large majority
a provision requiring a supermajority vote — say, 80 % of the common shares instead of the usual bare majority rule—R. C. Clark
R. C. ClarkLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
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