minority

7 definitions • 15 examples

a smaller number or part:

It's only a tiny minority of people who are causing the problem.

Children with single parents at my school were very much in the minority (= there were very few).

This section of the bookstore caters for minority interests (= subjects that interest only a few people).

any small group in society that is different from the rest because of their race, religion, or political beliefs, or a person who belongs to such a group:

ethnic/religious minorities

The plan was designed to help women and minorities overcome discrimination in the workplace.

less than half of a total number or amount; the smaller part of something:

[ U ] Only a minority of people support military action.

[ U ] Traditional families are in the minority in this neighborhood (= there are not many).

a group of people who share some characteristic by birth that makes their group smaller than some other groups in a society and may cause others to treat them unfairly:

He argued that African Americans and other minorities were not getting a fair deal in sports and elsewhere in society.

Jews and Roman Catholics belonged to religious minorities.

a small number of the people or things in a group:

Only a small/tiny minority of customers have complained about the changes.

be in a/the minority I don't like the design, but I'm in the minority – most people say they love it.

a group of people in a country or area who are of a different race, or have a different culture or religion to that of most other people there:

ethnic/racial minority We want to end discrimination against women and racial minorities.

minority community/employee/group British Asians are the largest minority group among UK staff.

used to refer to the situation when a person or organization owns fewer shares in a company than other shareholders, and not enough to be in control of the company:

Many minority shareholders are local people.

He may be close to selling his minority stake in the company.