mi ‧ nor ‧ i ‧ ty S3 W2 AC /maɪˈnɒrəti, maɪˈnɒrɪti $ məˈnɔː-, məˈnɑː-/ BrE AmE noun ( plural minorities )
1 . [singular also + plural verb] a small group of people or things within a much larger group OPP majority :
Gaelic is still spoken in Ireland by a tiny minority.
minority of
Only a minority of people support these new laws.
small/tiny/substantial/significant minority
Gay men are a small but significant minority.
minority report (=a report by a minority of a group who do not agree with the others)
2 . [countable usually plural]
a) a group of people of a different race, religion etc from most other people in that country:
People from ethnic minorities often face prejudice.
the very large Russian minorities in Ukraine and Moldova
children from minority groups
the teaching of minority languages in schools
minority leader/businessman/student etc American English :
a school with a high proportion of minority students
b) American English someone who belongs to a group like this:
Businesses are under pressure to hire minorities and women.
3 . be in the/a minority to form less than half of a group:
Boys are very much in the minority at the dance class.
4 . be in a minority of one to be the only person in a group who has a particular opinion
5 . [uncountable] law the period of time when someone is below the age at which they become legally responsible for their actions
• • •
COLLOCATIONS
■ adjectives
▪ a small minority
She is one of a small minority of women working in engineering.
▪ a tiny minority
Only a tiny minority of the population actually commit crimes.
▪ a large minority
A large minority of women feel happier when their husbands leave them.
▪ a substantial/sizeable minority (=a large minority)
A sizeable minority of people sleep less than five hours a night without problems.
▪ a significant minority (=a large and fairly important minority)
A significant minority of older people have difficulty in caring for themselves.
■ verbs
▪ be in a minority
Male students are in a minority in this class.
▪ represent a minority
Old people still only represent a minority of the population.
▪ form a minority ( also constitute a minority formal )
This type of cell forms a minority of the cells in the nervous system.
▪ affect a minority
The side effects only affect a minority of people who take the drug.
■ minority + NOUN
▪ a minority group
It’s ridiculous to refer to women as a minority group.
▪ a minority interest
Jazz is a minority interest, but it is still an important part of musical studies.
▪ a minority opinion/view
This is a minority view among scientists.
▪ a minority stake (=a number of shares in a company, equalling less than half the total number)
IBM has bought a minority stake in the computer company.
▪ a minority shareholder (=someone who owns less than half the shares in a company)
A minority shareholder with 10% of voting rights refused to accept the plan.