Synonyms of preponderant

preponderant

adjective

as in dominant

formal greater in number, force, or importance

A preponderant number of visitors are from outside the country.

Related Words

• dominant
• typical
• predominant
• representative
• characteristic
• normal
• standard
• majority
• regular
• average
• common
• prevalent
• true
• pervasive
• archetypal
• prevailing
• overall
• ruling

Dissimilar Words

• unusual
• uncommon
• unwonted
• unconventional
• anomalous
• abnormal
• atypical
• deviant
• aberrant
• uncustomary
• irregular
• nonrepresentative
• untypical
• nontypical

Synonym Chooser

How is the word preponderant different from other adjectives like it?

Some common synonyms of preponderant are dominant, paramount, and predominant. While all these words mean "superior to all others in influence or importance," preponderant applies to an element or factor that outweighs all others in influence or effect.

preponderant evidence in her favor

In what contexts can dominant take the place of preponderant?

In some situations, the words dominant and preponderant are roughly equivalent. However, dominant applies to something that is uppermost because ruling or controlling.

a dominant social class

When is it sensible to use paramount instead of preponderant?

The meanings of paramount and preponderant largely overlap; however, paramount implies supremacy in importance, rank, or jurisdiction.

unemployment was the paramount issue in the campaign

When would predominant be a good substitute for preponderant?

Although the words predominant and preponderant have much in common, predominant applies to something that exerts, often temporarily, the most marked influence.

a predominant emotion

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of preponderant

Because sugar plantations were so large and enslaved populations were so preponderant, whites feared that any tumult would end with their heads on pikes. —Daniel Immerwahr, New Yorker, 4 May 2026

American grand strategists also need to ask whether the country still benefits from being the preponderant provider of global public goods, such as freedom of navigation. —Rebecca Lissner, Foreign Affairs, 24 June 2025

Market value was preponderant in determining the value of the piece of land that the state deemed worthy of expropriating. —Isaac Chotiner, The New Yorker, 19 Feb. 2025

But the preponderant migrants’ motivation has been, and continues to be, to provide a better life for their families. —Bill Gray, The Mercury News, 12 Feb. 2025

The relevance and recent growth of regional Mexican music has become undeniable, and today, the genre holds a preponderant place within the industry. —Tere Aguilera, Billboard, 16 Mar. 2023

Under federal law, race cannot be a preponderant motive in drawing a district, wrote Dr. Cervas, a fellow at Carnegie Mellon University. —Jimmy Vielkind and Eliza Collins, WSJ, 21 May 2022