Popularity

How to spell popularity

10 letters · 5 syllables

How to pronounce popularity

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does popularity mean?

1. nounThe state of being liked, admired, or supported by many people.

Popularity in a sentence

• The new manager gained popularity by listening to staff concerns.

• The show's popularity surged after the finale aired.

Where does popularity come from?

Language of origin: Latin

This word traces back to the Latin populus, meaning 'the people' or 'the public', the same root that gives us 'population', 'public', and 'popular'. The Latin adjective popularis described something belonging to or favoured by the people, and from it Late Latin built popularitas, the quality of being liked by the public. English took the term in through French popularite during the 1500s, originally with a faintly political flavour: it described a leader's standing with the common people. Over time the meaning broadened to cover the general state of being widely liked or admired, whether of a person, a product, or an idea. Knowing that the core is populus, 'the people', helps fix the single 'p' in the middle and the 'u' before the 'l', since the word is simply 'popular' plus a familiar ending.

How the word is built

• popul- (from Latin populus: the people)
• -ar (relating to)
• -ity (noun-forming suffix denoting a state or quality)