Definify.com
Webster 1913 Edition
Majority
1.
The quality or condition of being major or greater; superiority.
Specifically: (a)
The military rank of a major.
(b)
The condition of being of full age, or authorized by law to manage one’s own affairs.
2.
The greater number; more than half;
as, a
majority
of mankind; a majority
of the votes cast.3.
[Cf. L.
majores
.] Ancestors; ancestry.
[Obs.]
4.
The amount or number by which one aggregate exceeds all other aggregates with which it is contrasted; especially, the number by which the votes for a successful candidate exceed those for all other candidates;
as, he is elected by a
. See majority
of five hundred votesPlurality
. To go over to the majority
or To join the majority
to die.
Webster 1828 Edition
Majority
MAJOR'ITY
, n.1.
The greater number; more than half; as a majority of mankind; a majority of votes in Congress. A measure may be carried by a large or small majority.2.
Full age; the age at which the laws of a country permit a young person to manage his own affairs. Henry III. had no sooner come to his majority, than the barons raised war against him.3.
The office, rank or commission of a major.4.
The state of being greater. It is not a plurality of parts, without majority of parts. [Little used.]
5.
[L. majores.] Ancestors; ancestry. [Not used.]6.
Chief rank. [Not used.]Definition 2024
majority
majority
English
Noun
majority (plural majorities)
- More than half (50%) of some group
- The majority agreed that the new proposal was the best.
- Those opposing the building plans were in the majority, so the building project was canceled.
- 1920, Champ Clark, Democratic Achievement:
- But in 1912 the American people gave the Democrats another opportunity, and under the leadership of Woodrow Wilson we swept the country from sea to sea. At the end of that historic contest we had the Presidency, the Senate by a working majority, and the House by an overwhelming majority.
- The difference between the winning vote and the rest of the votes
- The winner with 53% had a 6% majority over the loser with 47%.
- (dated) Legal adulthood
- By the time I reached my majority, I had already been around the world twice.
- (Britain) The office held by a member of the armed forces in the rank of major
- On receiving the news of his promotion, Charles Snodgrass said he was delighted to be entering his majority.
- Ancestors; ancestry.
Usage notes
- Majority in the sense of "more than half" is used with countable nouns only; for example, "The majority of the members of the committee were in favour of the motion." It is incorrect to use with it uncountable nouns, as in "The majority of the world is covered with water." In the latter case, it is preferable to use expressions such as "the larger part of" or "most of" instead of the "the majority of",
Antonyms
- (more than half): minority
Derived terms
Terms derived from majority
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Related terms
See also
Translations
more than half
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difference between the winning vote and the rest of the votes
legal adulthood
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