Dictionary

preponderance en · NOUN

Pronunciation

• /pɹɪˈpɒndəɹəns/ (Received-Pronunciation)
• (General-American) audio
• (Southern-England) audio
• /pɹɪˈpɒndɹəns/ (Received-Pronunciation)
• /pɹəˈpɑndəɹəns/ (General-American)
• /pɹəˈpɑndɹəns/ (General-American)

Etymology

Etymology tree English preponderant Proto-Indo-European *-onts Latin -ns Latin -āns Proto-Indo-European *-(i)yós Proto-Italic *-ijos Proto-Italic *-ios Old Latin -ios Latin -ius Latin -ia Latin -āntia Old French -ancebor. Middle English -aunce English -ance English preponderance From preponderant + -ance.

Meanings

1. (countable, uncountable) Superiority in amount or number; the bulk or majority; also, a large amount or number; an abundance, a profusion.
   • Is there a preponderance of female protagonists in commercial fiction, and if so, what does it mean? 1997 August 17, Patricia Holt, “Just add sand; trash fiction for end-of-the summer beach reading”, in San Francisco Chronicle, San Francisco, Calif.: Hearst Communications, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 1:
   • Subtle, institutional discrimination was evident in the preponderance of blacks and underprivileged whites fighting the war. 2000 April 17, Paul Van Slambrouck, “California’s brightest star is, well, gray”, in The Christian Science Monitor, Boston, Mass.: Christian Science Publishing Society, →ISSN, →OCLC:
   • [S]trong proofs are at hand to shew, that in the Irish people there is a large admixture, if not an overwhelming praeponderance, of Iberian elements. 1857, R[obert] Harries Jones, “Part the Second”, in The Japhetic Races. A Historical and Ethnological Inquiry into the Consanguinity of Various European Races. […], Göttingen: Printed at the University Press by W. Fr. Kaestner, →OCLC, section II, page 36:
2. (countable, uncountable) Superiority of influence, power, a quality, etc.; an outweighing, predominance, pre-eminence.
   • But even less disgruntled observers have insisted that pain and unpleasure are more common in dreams than pleasure: for instance, Scholz (1893, 57), Volkelt (1875, 80), and others. Indeed two ladies, Florence Hallam and Sarah Weed (1896, 499), have actually given statistical expression, based on a study of their own dreams, to the preponderance of unpleasure in dreaming. 1953, Sigmund Freud, “Distortion in Dreams”, in James Strachey, transl., The Interpretation of Dreams (First Part) (The Standard Edition of the Complete Psychological Works of Sigmund Freud), volume IV, London: The Hogarth Press and the Institute of Psycho-Analysis, published 1971, →ISBN, page 134:
   • In a few weeks he [William III of England] had changed the relative position of all the states in Europe, and had restored the equilibrium which the preponderance of one power had destroyed. 1851, Thomas Babington Macaulay, chapter XI, in The History of England from the Accession of James the Second, volume III, London: Longman, Brown, Green, and Longmans, →OCLC, page 49:
3. (countable, obsolete, uncountable) Greater physical weight.
4. (countable, historical, obsolete, specifically, uncountable) Greater physical weight. ▸ The excess of weight of that part of a cannon behind the trunnions over that in front of them.

Forms

Deriveds

preponderance of evidence · preponderance of the evidence

Relateds

preponderous · preponderant · preponderancy · preponderantly · preponderatingly · preponderating · prepondering · preponderately · preponderously · preponderation · preponder · preponderate

Synonyms

preponderation · preponderancy · weight · preponderancy · prevalence · preponderancy

Translations (52)

pl przewaga (excess of weight of that part of a cannon behind the trunnions over that in front of them) · ja 優越 (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · el υπεροχή (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · fr prépondérance (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · ga trom (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · el κυριαρχία (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · sh prȅvaga (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · la preponderantia (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · ru превосхо́дство (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · sv övervikt (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · es preponderancia (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · de Übergewicht (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · sh пре̏вага (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · ru переве́с (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · de Übergewichtigkeit (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · ka უპირატესობა (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · ml മുന്നിട്ടുനിൽക്കൽ (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · cmn 優勢 /优势 (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · ca preponderància (excess of weight of that part of a cannon behind the trunnions over that in front of them) · eo superrego (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · pl przewaga (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · fi enemmistö (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · cs přesila (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · ko 우세 (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · cmn 優越 /优越 (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · ta தாக்கம் (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · de Überlegenheit (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · fi ylivoima (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · ko 우월 (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · pt preponderância (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · nb overvekt (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · et ülekaal (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · fo yvirvekt (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · ja 優位 (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · bg превес (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · it predominanza (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · ja 優勢 (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · nn overvekt (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · uk перева́га (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · ca preponderància (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · fi enemmyys (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · ko 우위 (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · fo yvirluti (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · ro preponderență (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · de Präponderanz (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · ro precumpănire (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · be перава́га (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · ru преиму́щество (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · it preponderanza (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · cs převaha (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · bg превъзходство (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance) · io prepondero (superiority of influence, power, etc. — see also predominance)