The hardest part of this word confusion predominant vs predominate is remembering that only predominate is a verb.
For predominant and predominate are both adjectives with predominant the more common adjective . . . unless you’re a technical writer, then predominate would be more common.
Verb-wise, only ever use predominate.
However you choose, both words are all about the most dominating, most popular, powerful, biggest, most influential, controlling, most common . . .
Word Confusions . . .
. . . started as my way of dealing with a professional frustration with properly spelled words that were out of context in manuscripts I was editing as well as books I was reviewing. It evolved into a sharing of information with y’all. I’m hoping you’ll share with us words that have been a bête noire for you from either end.
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| Predominant | Predominate |
|---|---|
Montenegrin Municipalities Predominant Ethnicity is Austiger‘s own work is under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license, via Wikimedia Commons. |
Mud Houses Predominate by David Stanley is under the CC BY 2.0 license, via Flickr . |
| Part of Grammar: | |
| Adjective | Adjective; Verb, intransitive & transitive
Gerund: predominating Third person present verb: predominates |
| Adjective: Having the most importance, power, control, influence, authority, or force Most common or conspicuous
Present as the strongest or main element Preeminent Preponderant Prominent |
Adjective: Predominant Verb, intransitive:
Verb, transitive: Exert control over |
| Examples: | |
| Adjective: Red was the predominant color of the painting. It was the predominant theory in the field. “Egrets, gulls, and small mammals are the predominant wildlife on the island these days” (McCoubrey). Trump is the predominant candidate. Amanda’s predominant emotion was one of confusion. He played a predominant role in shaping French economic policy. |
Adjective: Red was the predominate color in the painting. He was the predominate reason for the change. The length of the dress was the predominate option. Verb, intransitive: Private interest was not allowed to predominate over the public good. Good predominates over evil in many literary works. French-speaking people predominate in Quebec. Verb, transitive: “Whereas, if you think about it, the Africans are running all over America right now, having riots for their civil rights and predominating the sports and popular-music industries” (Kingsolver). “Due to the effects of colonialism, the predominating ideal of beauty is largely Eurocentric” (Deo). |
| Derivatives: | |
| Noun: predominance, predominancy | Adjective: predominant Adverb: predominately, predominatingly Noun: predomination, predominator |
| History of the Word: | |
| Mid-16th century from the Old French, from the medieval Latin predominant- meaning predominating, from the verb predominari. | Late 16th century from the medieval Latin predominat- meaning predominated, from the verb predominari. |
C’mon, get it out of your system, bitch, whine, moan . . . which words are your pet peeves? Also, please note that I try to be as accurate as I can, but mistakes happen or I miss something. Email me if you find errors, so I can fix them . . . and we’ll all benefit!
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Resources for Predominant versus Predominate
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Apple Dictionary.com
Deo, Jesmeen Kaur. “Let’s Celebrate the Art of the Glow-down.” Salon. 7 June 2022. Accessed 8 Oct 2023. <https://www.salon.com/2022/06/07/lets-celebrate-the-art-of-the-glow-down/>.
The Free Dictionary: predominate, predominant
Kingsolver, Barbara. The Poisonwood Bible. HarperCollins, 2009. <https://amzn.to/46s2XzC>. Ebook.
McCoubrey, Dan. “Hilton Head_ to a Tee.” The Washington Post. 13 Nov 1983. Accessed 8 Oct 2023. <https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/travel/1983/11/13/hilton-head_-to-a-tee/5aedd22d-b583-4149-8fca-8b08972844f4/>.
Merriam-Webster: predominate
“predominate/predominant.” Vocabulary.com. n.d. Accessed 8 Oct 2023. <https://www.vocabulary.com/articles/chooseyourwords/predominate-predominant/>.
Seltzer, Sarah. “How Barbie Helped Raise a Generation of Feminists.” Time. 19 July 2023. Accessed 8 Oct 2023. <https://time.com/6295515/barbie-feminism/>.
Pinterest Photo Credits
Pebbles 2 by Tim Green is under the CC BY 2.0 license, via Flickr.
