minority

English

Etymology

From (deprecated template usage) [etyl] Middle French minorité, and its source (deprecated template usage) [etyl]  minoritas, from (deprecated template usage) [etyl] Latin minor.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /maɪˈnɒɹ.ɪ.ti/, /mɪˈnɒɹ.ɪ.ti/
• IPA^(key): /maɪˈnɔɹ.ɪ.ti/, /mɪˈnɔɹ.ɪ.ti/
• IPA^(key): /maɪˈnɑɹ.ɪ.ti/, /mɪˈnɑɹ.ɪ.ti/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɒɹɪti

Noun

minority (countable and uncountable, plural minorities)

1. The state of being a minor; youth, the period of a person's life prior to reaching adulthood. [from 15th c.]
   • 2011, Norman Davies, Vanished Kingdoms, Penguin 2012, p. 117:

     She also played a key role as dowager-regent during the minority of her son.

2. Any subgroup that does not form a numerical majority. [from 18th c.]

   Most people agreed, but a sizable minority were upset by the decision.

   • 2017 August 25, "Arrest threat as Yingluck Shinawatra misses verdict", in aljazeera.com, Al Jazeera

     The case is the latest chapter in a decade-long struggle by the nation's elite minority to crush the powerful political machine founded by Yingluck's brother, Thaksin Shinawatra, who was toppled in another coup in 2006.

3. (politics, used attributively of a party, government, etc.) Empowered by or representing a minority (usually a plurality) of votes cast, legislative seats, etc., rather than an outright majority thereof.
4. (US) A member of an ethnic minority. [from 20th c.]

   The company claims it has hired several minorities since the complaint was lodged.

Synonyms

• (youth): childhood

Antonyms

• (subgroup): majority
• (youth): adulthood

Derived terms

Terms derived from minority

• majority-minority
• minority government
• minority group

• minority language
• minority leader
• minority report

• minority rule
• visible minority

Related terms

Terms etymologically related to minority

• minor

Translations

subgroup that does not form a numerical majority

• Arabic: أَقَلِّيَّة f (ʔaqalliyya)
• Armenian: փոքրամասնություն (hy) (pʻokʻramasnutʻyun)
• Azerbaijani: azlıq (az), əqəliyyət
• Belarusian: ме́ншасць f (mjénšascʹ)
• Bulgarian: малцинство́ (bg) n (malcinstvó)
• Catalan: minoria (ca)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 少數／少数 (zh) (shǎoshù), 少数 (zh) (shǎoshù)

• Czech: menšina (cs) f
• Danish: mindretal (da)
• Dutch: minderheid (nl) f
• Esperanto: malplimulto
• Estonian: vähemus
• Finnish: vähemmistö (fi)
• French: minorité (fr) f
• Georgian: უმცირესობა (umciresoba)
• German: Minderheit (de) f, Minorität (de) f
• Greek: μειονότητα (el) f (meionótita)
• Hebrew: מיעוט m (mi'út)
• Hungarian: kisebbség (hu)
• Japanese: 少数 (ja) (しょうすう, shōsū)
• Khmer: please add this translation if you can
• Korean: 소수 (ko) (sosu)
• Lao: please add this translation if you can
• Lithuanian: mažuma (lt)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Macedonian: малцинство n (malcinstvo)
• Meänkieli: minuriteetti
• Norman: minnorité f
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: minoritet (no) m, mindretall n

  Nynorsk: minoritet m, mindretal n

• Occitan: minoritat (oc) f
• Persian: اقلیت (fa) (aqalleyat)
• Polish: mniejszość (pl) f
• Portuguese: minoria (pt) f
• Romanian: minoritate (ro)
• Russian: меньшинство́ (ru) n (menʹšinstvó)
• Scottish Gaelic: beag-chuid f
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: мањина f

  Roman: manjina (sh) f

• Slovak: menšina f
• Slovene: manjšina f
• Spanish: minoría (es) f
• Swedish: minoritet (sv) c
• Thai: คนกลุ่มน้อย (kon-glùm-nɔ́ɔi)
• Ukrainian: ме́ншість f (ménšistʹ)
• Vietnamese: thiểu số (vi)
• West Frisian: minderheid (fy)
• Yiddish: מינדערהייט f (minderheyt)

member of an ethnic minority

• Azerbaijani: azlıq (az)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: please add this translation if you can

• Finnish: vähemmistön edustaja
• Greek: μειονότητα (el) f (meionótita)
• Hindi: अल्पसंख्यक (hi) m (alpasaṅkhyak)
• Hungarian: kisebbségi
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Khmer: please add this translation if you can
• Lao: please add this translation if you can
• Thai: please add this translation if you can
• Tibetan: please add this translation if you can
• Vietnamese: please add this translation if you can
• Yiddish: מינדערהייט f (minderheyt)

period or condition of a person prior to reaching adulthood

• Catalan: minoritat
• Finnish: alaikäisyys (fi), nuoruus (fi)
• French: minorité (fr) f
• Galician: menoridade (gl) f
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Norman: minnorité f
• Portuguese: menoridade f
• Spanish: minoría (es) f

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Afrikaans: ^{(please verify)} minderheid (af)
• Dutch: ^{(please verify)} minderheid (nl)
• (deprecated template usage) French: minorité (fr), minoritaire (fr) (1)
• German: ^{(please verify)} Minderheit (de) f
• Macedonian: ^{(please verify)} малцинство n (malcinstvo)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• (deprecated template usage) Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: мањина f

  Roman: manjina (sh) f

• Sotho: ^{(please verify)} bonyenyane
• (deprecated template usage) Swedish: minoritet (sv) (2)

Adjective

minority (comparative more minority, superlative most minority)

1. Of or relating to a minority.

   They hold a minority interest in the company.