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dominance

noun
dom·​i·​nance | \ ˈdä-mÉ™-nÉ™n(t)s How to pronounce dominance (audio) , ˈdäm-nÉ™n(t)s\

Definition of dominance

1 : the fact or state of being dominant: such as
a sociology : controlling, prevailing, or powerful position especially in a social hierarchy (see hierarchy sense 4) male dominance political dominance companies competing for dominance in the market dominance over their rivals
b genetics : the property of one of a pair of alleles or traits that suppresses expression (see expression sense 1b(4)) of the other in the heterozygous condition
c ecology : the influence or control over ecological communities exerted by a dominant (see dominant entry 2 sense 2b)
2 biology : functional (see functional sense 1b) asymmetry between a pair of bodily structures (such as the right and left hands) right brain dominance
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Examples of dominance in a Sentence

although Napoléon had achieved dominance over the European continent, Great Britain still ruled the waves the professor's dominance in the field of ancient Greek history

Recent Examples on the Web

 This gives Los Blancos an overwhelming dominance in this tie, with 24 wins to their name alongside 12 draws. — SI.com, "Villarreal vs Real Madrid: Where to Watch, Buy Tickets, Live Stream, Kick Off Time & Team News," 30 Aug. 2019 During European elections in May, 11 percent of Germans voted for the AfD, but in many parts of formerly communist east Germany, the AfD has established a formidable hold, ending decades of both CDU and Social Democratic dominance. — Washington Post, "Germany’s far right is set to challenge Angela Merkel’s grip in upcoming elections," 30 Aug. 2019 Liberty has been a beast the past three years, going a combined 46-8 with a pair of state titles, and Strohmer expects that dominance to continue. — Rich Scherr, baltimoresun.com, "2019 Baltimore-area field hockey preseason Top 15 poll," 30 Aug. 2019 Lawmakers have asked about this, part of the scrutiny of the privacy practices and dominance of big tech. — Mark Bergen, Los Angeles Times, "YouTube is under fire for inappropriate kids videos. Rivals see an opening," 29 Aug. 2019 Participants in Jackson Hole mentioned the work of Gita Gopinath of the IMF, which showed that the dollar’s dominance in trade invoicing may mean economies cannot adjust to external shocks by as much as traditional models suggest. — The Economist, "A meeting of economists and central bankers was overshadowed by President Donald Trump," 27 Aug. 2019 The disconnect between running backs’ dominance in fantasy and their value in the real game is one reason the PPR scoring system, which awards points for receptions, was developed 15 years ago in a bid to revalue wide receivers. — New York Times, "One Place Running Backs Still Rule: Fantasy Football," 26 Aug. 2019 Looks like Scott may have to lead with the Pac-12′s swimming and diving dominance. — oregonlive.com, "Canzano: Larry Scott’s Power Breakfast needs a Pac-12 punch from Oregon Ducks," 26 Aug. 2019 Huawei has been working on its own operating system called Harmony OS and it’s expected to make a dent in Android’s market dominance in a market of 1.4 billion people at home but not so much outside China. — Paul Adepoju, Quartz Africa, "The path to the next billion internet users is through feature phones," 23 Aug. 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'dominance.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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First Known Use of dominance

1819, in the meaning defined at sense 1

History and Etymology for dominance

see dominant entry 1

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More Definitions for dominance

dominance

noun
dom·​i·​nance | \ ˈdä-mÉ™-nÉ™ns How to pronounce dominance (audio) \

Kids Definition of dominance

: the state or fact of being in control of or having more power than another The largest wolf had dominance over the pack.

dominance

noun
dom·​i·​nance | \ ˈdäm(-É™)-nÉ™n(t)s How to pronounce dominance (audio) \

Medical Definition of dominance

: the fact or state of being dominant: as
a : the relative position of an individual in a social hierarchy — compare pecking order
b : the property of one of a pair of alleles or traits that suppresses expression of the other in the heterozygous condition
c : functional asymmetry between a pair of bodily structures (as the right and left hands)

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More from Merriam-Webster on dominance

Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for dominance

Spanish Central: Translation of dominance

Nglish: Translation of dominance for Spanish Speakers

Britannica English: Translation of dominance for Arabic Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about dominance

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