majority

adj. pertaining to or characterized by a majority

n. greater part or number, number greater than half of the total; number of votes which amounts to more than half the votes cast; military rank or position of major; adulthood, maturity

This article is about the mathematical concept of majority. For the various legal definitions of adulthood, see Age of majority. A majority, also known as a simple majority in the U.S., is a subset of a group that is more than half of the entire group. This should not be confused with a plurality, which is a subset having the largest number of parts. A plurality is not necessarily a majority, as the largest subset may be less than half of the entire group.
See more at Wikipedia.org...

Noun
1. the property resulting from being or relating to the greater in number of two parts; the main part; "the majority of his customers prefer it"; "the bulk of the work is finished"
(synonym) bulk
(antonym) minority
(hypernym) number, figure
(attribute) major
2. (elections) more than half of the votes
(synonym) absolute majority
(hypernym) relative quantity
(classification) election
3. the age at which a person is considered competent to manage their own affairs
(synonym) legal age
(antonym) minority, nonage
(hypernym) age, eld
(part-holonym) adulthood, maturity

(n.)
The quality or condition of being major or greater; superiority.
  

(n.)
The military rank of a major.
  

(n.)
The greater number; more than half; as, a majority of mankind; a majority of the votes cast.
  

(n.)
The condition of being of full age, or authorized by law to manage one's own affairs.
  

(n.)
The amount or number by which one aggregate exceeds all other aggregates with which it is contrasted; especially, the number by which the votes for a successful candidate exceed those for all other candidates; as, he is elected by a majority of five hundred votes. See Plurality.
  

(n.)
Ancestors; ancestry.
  

The state or condition of a person who has arrived at full age. He is then said to be a major, in opposition to minor, which is his condition during infancy.

The age at which a person is entitled to most legal rights and obligations. In most states, the age of majority is 18, although some rights or privileges such as the drinking of alcoholic beverages is often withheld until a later date.

Government. The greater number of the voters; though in another sense, it means the greater number of votes given in which sense it is a mere plurality.

In every well regulated society, the majority has always claimed and exercised the right to govern the whole society, in the manner pointed out by the fundamental laws and the minority are bound, whether they have assented or not, for the obvious reason that opposite wills cannot prevail at the same time, in the same society, on the same subject. In the absence of all stipulations, the general rule in partnerships is, that each partner has an equal voice, and a majority acting bonafide, have the right to manage the partnership concerns, and dispose of the partnership property, notwithstanding the dissent of the minority; but in every case when the minority have a right to give an opinion, they ought to be notified. 2 Bouv. Inst. n. 1954.
   

This entry contains material from Bouvier's Legal Dictionary, a work published in the 1850's.