preponderation

pre·pon·der·ate

 (prĭ-pŏn′də-rāt′)

intr.v. pre·pon·der·at·ed, pre·pon·der·at·ing, pre·pon·der·ates

1. To exceed something else in weight.

2. To be greater than something else, as in power, force, quantity, or importance; predominate: "In balancing his faults with his perfections, the latter seemed rather to preponderate" (Henry Fielding).

adj. (-dər-ĭt)

Preponderant.

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[Latin praeponderāre, praeponderāt- : prae-, pre- + ponderāre, to weigh; see (s)pen- in Indo-European roots.]

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pre·pon′der·ate·ly adv.

pre·pon′der·a′tion n.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.