Minorities

How to spell minorities

10 letters · 4 syllables

How to pronounce minorities

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does minorities mean?

1. nounGroups of people that differ from the larger population in race, religion, language, or background, and that are fewer in number.
2. nounThe smaller parts or numbers within larger totals, such as votes or shares.

Minorities in a sentence

• The new policy aims to protect ethnic minorities in the workplace.

• In two of the three votes the proposal was supported only by small minorities.

• The census recorded steady growth among several minorities over the past decade.

• The motion passed in most districts but was backed only by small minorities elsewhere.

Where does minorities come from?

Language of origin: Latin

The word traces back to the Latin minor, meaning 'smaller' or 'lesser', which was itself a comparative form related to the verb minuere, 'to diminish or make smaller'. From this came the medieval Latin minoritas, describing the condition of being smaller or fewer in number, and that noun passed into English through French as 'minority' during the late 1500s. The earliest English sense was simply 'the smaller part or number', and over time it broadened to describe groups within a larger population, whether by ethnicity, religion, or opinion. The same minor root sits inside familiar relatives such as 'minus', 'minute' (in the sense of tiny), and 'diminish'. The spelling trap lies in the unstressed middle: the '-or-' is easy to slur, and the '-ities' ending must keep its 'i' before the plural, since the singular 'minority' drops the 'y' and adds '-ies'.

How the word is built

• minor- (from Latin minor: smaller, lesser)
• -ity (noun-forming suffix denoting a state or quality)
• -es (plural)