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Mostly vs Majority - What's the difference?

mostly | majority |

As an adverb mostly

is mainly or chiefly; for the most part; usually, generally, on the whole.

As a noun majority is

more than half (50%) of some group.

mostly

English

Alternative forms

* mostlie (obsolete) * moastly (obsolete)

Adverb

(-)
  • Mainly or chiefly; for the most part; usually, generally, on the whole.
  • *{{quote-magazine, date=2013-06-29, volume=407, issue=8842, page=72-3, magazine=(The Economist)
    • , title= A punch in the gut , passage=Mostly , the microbiome is beneficial. It helps with digestion and enables people to extract a lot more calories from their food than would otherwise be possible. Research over the past few years, however, has implicated it in diseases from atherosclerosis to asthma to autism.}}
  • (obsolete) To the greatest extent; most.
  • * 1817 , , Northanger Abbey , [http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=mDUbXHRIbRIC&dq=northanger+abbey+search+austen&pg=PP1&ots=EDH1Xu36el&sig=J7fVUwXmydAD36S8oLTWv2-ICNk&hl=en&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=1&ct=result#PPA163,M1]:
    • She was to be their chosen visitor, she was to be for weeks under the same roof with the person whose society she mostly prized [...]!

    Synonyms

    * (mainly or chiefly) by and large, in the main, more often than not

    majority

    English

    (wikipedia majority)

    Noun

    (majorities)
  • More than half (50%) of some group
    • The majority agreed that the new proposal was the best.
    Those opposing the building plans were in the majority , so the building project was canceled.
  • * {{quote-book, year=1920, title=, author=Champ Clark
    • , passage=But in 1912 the American people gave the Democrats another opportunity, and under the leadership of Woodrow Wilson we swept the country from sea to sea. At the end of that historic contest we had the Presidency, the Senate by a working majority, and the House by an overwhelming majority.}}
  • The difference between the winning vote and the rest of the votes
    • The winner with 53% had a 6% majority over the loser with 47%.
  • (dated) Legal adulthood
    • By the time I reached my majority , I had already been around the world twice.
  • (UK) The office held by a member of the armed forces in the rank of major
    • On receiving the news of his promotion, Charles Snodgrass said he was delighted to be entering his majority .
  • Ancestors; ancestry.

    • Usage notes

    * Majority in the sense of "more than half" is used with countable nouns only; for example, "The majority of the members of the committee were in favour of the motion." It is incorrect to use with it uncountable nouns, as in "The majority of the world is covered with water." In the latter case, it is preferable to use expressions such as "the larger part of" or "most of" instead of the "the majority of",

    Antonyms

    * (more than half) minority

    Derived terms

    * by a majority * dictatorship of the majority * double majority * majority leader * majority rule * silent majority * simple majority * supermajority * tyranny of the majority

    Related terms

    * major * plurality

    See also

    * most