influence

7 definitions • 20 examples

the power to have an effect on people or things, or a person or thing that is able to do this:

bad/good influence on Helen's a bad/good influence on him.

have influence over He has a huge amount of influence over the city council.

exert influence Christopher hoped to exert his influence to make them change their minds.

under the influence of At the time she was under the influence of her father.

to affect or change how someone or something develops, behaves, or thinks:

She's very good at making friends and influencing people.

[ + obj + to infinitive ] What influenced you to choose a career in nursing?

to cause someone to change a behavior, belief, or opinion, or to cause something to be changed:

Businesses make large contributions to members of Congress, hoping to influence their votes on key issues.

She was influenced by the common-sense views of her grandparents.

That speech influenced the course of American history.

the power to have an effect on people or things, or someone or something having such power:

[ C ] The kid next door is a bad/good influence on Kevin.

[ U ] She used her influence to get her son a summer job.

the ability to have an effect on people or events:

exert/have/exercise (an) influence He is close enough to the President to exert influence.

(an) influence on sth Bloggers are expanding their influence on American politics.

(an) influence over sth Consumer groups act as champions and have critical influence over industry.

considerable/profound/growing influence He called on the industry to use its considerable influence to help resolve the situation.

a person or thing that is able to have an effect on other people or on events:

International influences in the form of technology, systems and capital have historically been a feature of industrialization and economic growth.

be an influence on sb/sth She has been a big influence on me in my career.

considerable/great/major influence

to affect or change how someone or something develops, behaves, or thinks:

Many analysts regard the state of the U.S. job market as a major factor influencing consumer confidence.

influence how/what/when An organization's values have been shown to influence how employees interact with each other.