What does prevalence mean?
Word: Prevalence
Part of Speech: Noun
Meaning: Prevalence means how common or widespread something is in a place or at a particular time.
How do you spell prevalence?
Syllables: prev - a - lence
Tricky part: The weak vowel in the ending could be heard as an a, so pupils write ance. The ending takes an e.
Watch out for: prevalance, prevalanse, prevalense
Memory tip: E for everywhere: a thing with high prevalence is seen everywhere, so pick the E ending.
Prevalence in a sentence
Example 1: The prevalence of English on shop signs in Singapore surprised my cousin from Germany.
Example 2: The prevalence of coconut trees along the Kerala coast gives the state its green look.
Example 3: Our project measured the prevalence of solar panels on rooftops in our street.
Fun Fact
Behind the word lies a Latin verb meaning 'to have greater power'. The related adjective first meant powerful in English in the 1500s; the sense of common came later.
Practise the CREST Way
Word Cookie
Find the extra letter in the word:
prevallence
a) l
b) n
c) v
d) e
Show answer
a) l. This word keeps a single l, however long it looks.
Mingle-Mangle
Unjumble the letters in the sentence to form a meaningful word:
The eplervnace of mobile phones has changed how families in our town stay in touch.
a) preference
b) prevention
c) providence
d) prevalence
Show answer
d) prevalence. Prevention and providence have no l, and preference has no v.
Spell-o-Spell
Only one word in the list is misspelt. Choose the meaning of that word.
1. prevelence 2. diligence 3. reference 4. patience
a) careful, steady effort over a long time
b) the fact that a thing is seen or found very often
c) the ability to wait calmly without getting upset
d) a mention of something, or a source you look up
Show answer
b) the fact that a thing is seen or found very often. The vowel straight after the v is wrong in the misspelt word; diligence, reference and patience are all printed correctly.
Word Connection
Choose the antonym of the word prevalence as used in the sentence:
The prevalence of bicycles in this town surprises most visitors from the city.
a) abundance
b) popularity
c) frequency
d) rarity
Show answer
d) rarity. Rarity means hardly being found at all, while the other three lean the same way as the word.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. A survey looks at the prevalence of left-handed pupils in a school. What is it trying to find out?
a) how many pupils write with the left hand
b) whether left-handed pupils get better marks
c) which hand the teachers like pupils to use
d) when pupils began to hold a pen properly
Show answer
a) how many pupils write with the left hand
2. Which sentence suggests a high prevalence of tea stalls in a town?
a) The only stall closes during the winter months.
b) You have to walk for miles to find even one.
c) You can hardly walk down a lane without passing one.
d) One stall opened near the station just last week.
Show answer
c) You can hardly walk down a lane without passing one.
