What does majority mean?
Word: Majority
Part of Speech: Noun
Meaning: Majority means the larger part of a group of people or things.
Synonyms: greater part
How do you spell majority?
Syllables: ma - jor - i - ty
Tricky part: The vowel before the t is said so lightly that majorety is a common slip. The word ends in -ity.
Watch out for: majorety, majoraty
Memory tip: The ending is spelt like city: picture a whole city voting, and most of it ends up on the -ity side.
Majority in a sentence
Example 1: The majority of students in our class walk to school.
Example 2: A majority of the cricket team voted for blue shirts this season.
Example 3: By noon, the majority of the mangoes at the stall had been sold.
Fun Fact
In the UK House of Commons, a party that wins at least 326 of the 650 seats has an overall majority: more seats than all the other parties put together.
Practise the CREST Way
Word Connection
Choose the antonym of the word:
majority
a) bulk
b) mass
c) multitude
d) minority
Show answer
d) minority. Multitude, mass and bulk all describe a big amount; the opposite of the larger part is the smaller part.
Mingle-Mangle
Form a meaningful word from the jumbled letters:
rtiyamjo
a) priority
b) majority
c) maturity
d) majestic
Show answer
b) majority. The jumble has a j and a y, which only majority uses; maturity, priority and majestic each need a letter that is not here.
Word Cookie
Insert the correct pair of letters to form a word:
m_j_rity
a) o, o
b) a, e
c) a, o
d) e, o
Show answer
c) a, o. The first vowel is weak but written a, and the j is followed by the o you hear in major.
Spell-o-Spell
Choose the correctly spelt word:
a) simplisity
b) comunity
c) curiousity
d) majority
Show answer
d) majority. Curiosity drops the u of curious, community has two m's, and simplicity is spelt with a c before the -ity.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Which word is often used before majority to show that it is a very large one?
a) tiny
b) short
c) thin
d) vast
Show answer
d) vast
2. A plan passed by a majority is one that ____.
a) every member voted for
b) the oldest member voted for
c) most of the members voted for
d) only the leader voted for
Show answer
c) most of the members voted for
