dominant
/ˈdɒmɪnənt/ (bre, ipa) · /ˈdɑːmɪnənt/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈdä-mə-nənt ˈdäm-nənt/ (ame, mw) · /ˈdɒm.ɪ.nənt/ (bre, ipa) · /ˈdɑː.mə.nənt/ (ame, ipa)
dominant — adjective
- dominantpositive
- more dominantcomparative
- most dominantsuperlative
1. stronger, more important, or more noticeable than any comparable person or thing
stronger, more important, or more noticeable than any comparable person or thing — for example, a company that controls the largest share of a market, or a language used most widely in a region.
Cyrus's company holds a dominant position in the Asian electronics market.
collocation: dominant position in [sector]
English became the dominant language for international business during the twentieth century.
The dominant theme of the novel is the clash between tradition and modern life.
In many ecosystems, a few dominant species shape the entire landscape.
- predominant
emphasises being the most common or widespread; slightly more formal than dominant
- prevailing
focuses on being the most widely accepted or current at a given time
- leading
stresses being ahead of others, often in a competition or ranking
- subordinate
lower in rank or position; opposite of holding power
- minor
smaller in importance or size
文法句型
dominant + noun
be dominant
dominant in/over + noun
用法筆記
Often used in business, ecology, and social contexts to describe the most powerful or widespread element in a group. Common in both attributive (a dominant force) and predicative (the force is dominant) positions.
常見錯誤
2. describes a gene that causes a physical characteristic to appear in a living thi
describes a gene that causes a physical characteristic to appear in a living thing even when inherited from only one parent — for example, the gene for brown eyes can show up in a child who has only one parent with brown eyes.
Lakshmi learned that brown eyes are a dominant trait that can appear even if only one parent has them.
collocation: dominant trait
In Mendel's pea plants, the dominant gene for tall stems always won over the recessive short-stem gene.
structure: dominant gene for [trait]
Romi's family carries a dominant gene for a rare blood type that appears in every generation.
Maja learned that curly hair comes from a dominant gene, needing only one parent with curls.
- expressive
used in genetics to describe a gene that is expressed in the phenotype
- inherited
broader term — applies to any characteristic passed through genes, not only dominant ones
- recessive
needs two copies (one from each parent) to produce the characteristic
文法句型
dominant gene
dominant trait
用法筆記
Nearly always used attributively before a noun (dominant gene, dominant allele, dominant trait). The opposite is recessive. Distinguished from the general sense by a focus on heredity — do not use this sense for social or competitive dominance.
常見錯誤
3. describes a limb or organ on one side that a person uses more often than the mat
describes a limb or organ on one side that a person uses more often than the matching body part opposite to it — for example, the hand you write with or the eye you naturally look through first.
Mayumi is left-handed, so her left hand is her dominant hand for writing and drawing.
collocation: dominant hand
Rachid's dominant eye is his left eye, which he closes first when he aims a camera.
collocation: dominant eye
When throwing a ball, most people use their dominant arm for better power and accuracy.
Antonia discovered that her right leg is her dominant leg when she kicks a football.
- non-dominant
the opposite side that is used less often
文法句型
dominant + body part
dominant hand/eye/foot
用法筆記
Used with body parts that come in pairs (hand, eye, arm, foot, leg). The dominant limb is typically the more coordinated one. Left-handed people have a left dominant hand; right-handed people have a right dominant hand.
4. describes a person who likes to take control of a group and expects others to fo
describes a person who likes to take control of a group and expects others to follow their decisions — for example, a manager who makes all the choices without asking team members for their opinions.
Roya found her new manager too dominant — he made every decision without asking the team.
predicative: be + too dominant
In the group project, Dylan was so dominant that quieter members rarely got to speak.
Some teams work better with a less dominant leader who encourages everyone to share ideas.
Kevin's dominant personality helped him become captain of the basketball team.
- assertive
more positive — confident without being aggressive
- domineering
strongly negative — suggests bullying or excessive control
- authoritative
neutral — describes someone whose power comes from knowledge or position
- submissive
ready to accept others' control; opposite of wanting to lead
- passive
does not take action or try to influence others
文法句型
dominant + noun (person)
be dominant in a group
用法筆記
Can be neutral or negative depending on context. In a sports or crisis context, being dominant may be praised; in a collaborative setting, it may suggest the person does not listen well. Overlaps partly with sense 1 when applied to people, but sense 4 specifically describes a personality trait, not external influence.
常見錯誤
5. relating to the fifth note of a major or minor musical scale, which creates tens
relating to the fifth note of a major or minor musical scale, which creates tension and often leads back to the first note (the tonic) — for example, in the key of C major, the dominant chord is built on the note G.
Eri practiced moving from the dominant chord to the tonic chord until it sounded smooth.
collocation: dominant chord → tonic chord
The piece builds tension with a long dominant seventh before resolving to a calm ending.
collocation: dominant seventh
In the key of G major, the dominant note is D, which is five steps up from G.
Matthew practised moving between the tonic and the dominant chord during his piano lesson.
文法句型
dominant chord
dominant note
dominant seventh
用法筆記
Technical music-theory sense used mostly in formal instruction. Nearly always appears alongside the musical terms tonic, subdominant, and resolution. If the learner does not study music theory, this sense can be safely ignored.
dominant — noun
- dominantsingular
- dominantsplural
1. the fifth step of a Western musical scale (major or minor), creating tension tha
the fifth step of a Western musical scale (major or minor), creating tension that typically resolves back to the first note (the tonic) — for example, in the key of C, the dominant is the note G.
Ilan found that playing the dominant before the tonic created a satisfying sense of resolution.
structure: the dominant → the tonic
In Western classical music, the dominant is the second most important note after the tonic.
Rachid learned to identify the dominant by ear after months of ear-training practice.
Antonia memorised the dominant in each of the twelve major scales for her music exam.
文法句型
the dominant
a dominant
用法筆記
The music-noun sense is closely related to the music adjective (sense 5). The adjective describes qualities (dominant chord, dominant note); the noun names the note itself (the dominant).
2. a gene or genetic factor that produces a visible physical characteristic in an o
a gene or genetic factor that produces a visible physical characteristic in an organism even when it is inherited from only one parent — for example, the version of a gene for brown eyes that shows up even if the other parent contributes a blue-eye gene.
Lakshmi explained that the dominant for brown hair colour masks the recessive blonde gene.
structure: the dominant for [trait]
Camila crossed yellow and green pea plants and the dominant for yellow seeds appeared in all offspring.
structure: the dominant for [trait] + appeared in [population]
Plant breeders look for dominants that give crops better resistance to disease.
Yan studied how a single dominant can give pea plants yellow seeds instead of green ones.
- dominant allele
more precise biological term for one of two versions of a gene at the same position on a chromosome
- recessive
a gene that only produces its trait when inherited from both parents
文法句型
a dominant
the dominant
用法筆記
The noun form works as a countable noun — one dominant, two dominants. It is used when referring to a specific gene or allele rather than the general concept of genetic dominance. More common in advanced biology or genetics writing than in everyday speech.