plurality

[ploo-ral-i-tee]

noun

plural

pluralities 

1. the excess of votes received by the leading candidate, in an election in which there are three or more candidates, over those received by the next candidate (majority ).

2. more than half of the whole; the majority.

3. a number greater than one.

4. fact of being numerous.

5. a large number; multitude.

6. state or fact of being plural.

7. Ecclesiastical.

   1. the holding by one person of two or more benefices at the same time; pluralism.

   2. any of the benefices so held.

plurality

/ plʊəˈrælɪtɪ /

noun

1. the state of being plural or numerous

2. maths a number greater than one

3. British equivalent: relative majority. the excess of votes or seats won by the winner of an election over the runner-up when no candidate or party has more than 50 per cent

4. a large number

5. the greater number; majority

6. another word for pluralism

Other Word Forms

• nonplurality noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of plurality¹

First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English pluralite, from Old French, from Late Latin plūrālitās; plural, -ity

Synonym Study

See majority.

Example Sentences

A recent series of polls show that Democrats are viewed by a plurality, if not a majority, of Americans as being out of touch with their real needs and concerns.

From Salon

At least a plurality of the recent high-budget, big-box office movies coming out of Hollywood involve action heroes derived from comic books.

From Salon

Officials are especially eager to see it overturned because California’s Central District is the single most populous in the country, and home to a plurality of undocumented immigrants.

From Los Angeles Times

As in the district’s current makeup, a majority of the new 33rd District’s eligible voters would be non-white, with Hispanic residents forming a plurality of the district’s citizens who are old enough to vote.

From Salon

He focused on transforming institutions by changing election laws, allowing him to create legislative supermajorities while winning a mere plurality of the vote.

From Salon

When To Use

What’s the difference between a plurality and a majority?

Generally speaking, word plurality refers to an amount that’s the largest of all the amounts that make up a total (even if it’s less than half), while the word majority refers to an amount that’s larger than half of a total.In casual use, the two words are sometimes used interchangeably to mean more than half of a total.They are also sometimes used interchangeably in an election with only two candidates (though majority is much more commonly used in the context). That’s because, in an election with only two ways to vote, getting more votes necessarily means getting more than half of the votes. For example, in such an election, a candidate can be said to have won by a two-thirds majority or a two-thirds plurality (meaning they have received two-thirds of all the votes cast, with the losing candidate receiving one-third).The terms are used in differing ways in elections with three or more candidates. In such an election, the word plurality often refers to the highest number of votes received when no candidate has received more than 50% of the vote.In this context, to win a plurality of votes, you just have to get the largest percentage of all vote-getters, which may not be as high as 50%. For example, a candidate in a three-way race may win the plurality by getting 40% of votes, with the runner-up getting 35% of votes and the last-place finisher getting 25% of votes. To win a majority of votes, a candidate would have to get more than 50%.Sometimes, plurality refers to how many more votes the winner has than the runner-up, and majority refers to the number of votes by which a candidate has exceeded the amount that would be 50%.If three candidates were to receive 600, 300, and 100 votes, the winner would have a 100-vote majority (due to having 100 votes more than 500, which is half of the total of 1,000 votes cast) and a plurality of 300 votes over the nearest opponent.Some types of elections require a candidate to receive the majority of the votes to win the election, while others just require a plurality.Here’s an example of plurality and majority used correctly in the same sentence.Example: Although no candidate received the majority of the vote, Ms. Molineaux got the plurality with 40%.Want to learn more? Read the full breakdown of the difference between plurality and majority.