Synonyms of prevailing

prevailing 1 of 2

adjective

1

as in conventional

accepted, used, or practiced by most people

the principal disagrees with the prevailing attitude toward corporal punishment

Synonyms & Similar Words

• conventional
• usual
• current
• customary
• prevalent
• standard
• popular
• going
• average
• normal
• stock
• widespread
• common
• ordinary
• universal
• everyday
• regular
• routine
• ubiquitous
• in
• fashionable
• epidemic
• accustomed
• wonted
• modish
• stylish

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• unusual
• extraordinary
• unpopular
• abnormal
• exceptional
• uncommon
• unconventional
• nonstandard

2

as in general

held by or applicable to a majority of the people

the prevailing custom here is to leave one's doors unlocked

Synonyms & Similar Words

• general
• overall
• public
• popular
• predominant
• unanimous
• common
• majority
• present
• current
• usual
• received
• ruling
• dominant
• vulgar
• typical
• contemporary
• prevalent
• universal
• widespread
• familiar
• characteristic
• pop
• pervasive
• communal
• preponderant
• everyday
• rife
• well-known
• shared
• household
• pandemic

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• uncommon
• unusual
• unknown
• strange
• special
• rare
• individual
• peculiar
• unique
• unpopular
• distinctive
• separate
• personal
• private
• idiosyncratic
• especial
• singular
• nonpublic

prevailing

2 of 2

verb

present participle of prevail

1

as in winning

to achieve victory (as in a contest)

we shall prevail despite the overwhelming odds

Synonyms & Similar Words

• winning
• triumphing
• succeeding
• overcoming
• conquering
• contending
• sweeping
• kicking butt
• carrying the day
• squeaking
• vying
• romping
• squeezing
• breezing

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• losing
• failing
• collapsing
• struggling
• folding
• declining
• waning
• slipping
• washing out
• flopping
• floundering
• slumping

2

as in surviving

to continue to operate or to meet one's needs

a custom that still prevails in many areas of Africa

Synonyms & Similar Words

• surviving
• lasting
• persisting
• remaining
• continuing
• holding out
• going
• keeping up
• enduring
• holding up
• managing
• coping
• persevering
• lingering
• abiding
• stretching
• hanging in
• carrying on
• getting along
• getting on
• making out
• faring
• hanging on
• drawing out
• holding on
• running on
• getting by
• bearing up

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• failing
• going out
• running out
• dying
• breaking
• giving out
• stopping
• collapsing
• crashing
• expiring
• stalling
• breaking down
• cutting out
• waning
• fizzling
• petering (out)
• running down
• conking (out)

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of prevailing

Adjective

The group noted the projection was revised upward from an earlier estimate owing to an additional year in the budget window and higher prevailing interest rates. — Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 2 Apr. 2026

Likewise, prevailing concepts of Hamlet at the time cast the prince as a wan and melancholic, leading critics to bristle at Bernhardt’s energy. — Betsy Golden Kellem, JSTOR Daily, 18 Mar. 2026

Harvesting seed nearby is a way to get plants that are genetically adapted to the prevailing environmental conditions and are more likely to thrive. — Phil Diehl, San Diego Union-Tribune, 18 Jan. 2026

In the northern United States, enjoying the starry winter sky requires protection against the prevailing low temperatures. — Joe Rao, Space.com, 16 Jan. 2026

The monthly stochastic oscillator remains in overbought territory ( > 80%), underscoring the strength of the prevailing bullish trend rather than signaling exhaustion. — Katie Stockton, CNBC, 15 Dec. 2025

As municipal pools became mixed-gender in the 1920s and ’30s, swimming naked no longer fit prevailing notions of decency. — Jacob Beckert, The Atlantic, 13 Nov. 2025

Dissent is nothing more than the expression of an opinion that varies from the prevailing or traditional view or the position held by those in power. — Elizabeth Shackelford, Twin Cities, 26 Sep. 2025

Verb

The compliance system usage fee would cover enforcement of city contract provisions on contractors, including prevailing wage and living wage rules. — David Garrick, San Diego Union-Tribune, 9 July 2026

These include labor regulations such as prevailing wage obligations and environmental mandates such as the requirement that all new construction include solar panels. — Wayne Winegarden, Oc Register, 9 July 2026

The prevailing stereotype is that people of color can tolerate spicy food better than white people, and data show the majority of Reddit users are white. — Evan Moore, Charlotte Observer, 8 July 2026

Indigenous tzalam wood, leather, and polished lava stone are the predominant materials; earth tones and clean lines are the prevailing aesthetics. — Flora Stubbs, Travel + Leisure, 7 July 2026

As tensions boiled in the Gaza Strip in 2018, Eisenkot resisted pressure for a full-scale war, ultimately prevailing in Netanyahu’s cabinet against the minister of defense Avigdor Liberman (who resigned after the conflict ended). — Britannica Editors, Encyclopedia Britannica, 7 July 2026

For many years, the prevailing expectation was that Europe would transform its neighborhood and remake it in its own image. — Galip Dalay, Time, 7 July 2026

Despite the prevailing mood of American unity in the 1950s, art and literature tended to reject optimism. — Lily Meyer, The Atlantic, 7 July 2026

Four bidders scrapped over the nearly eight-foot-high work, known as the Hamilton Laocoön, with a buyer new to the old masters market prevailing. — News Desk, Artforum, 2 July 2026