propensity

Definitions  ·  Examples  ·  Pronunciations  ·  Etymologies  ·  Related  ·  Statistics  ·  Comments (2)  · 
Partisans of realism tell us that this propensity is a weakness, a fault; and such it is, beyond question, whenever it leads to forced and stagy contrasts.

View all »
Definitions (7)

Toggle American Heritage definitions American Heritage Dictionary (1)

  1. noun An innate inclination; a tendency. See Synonyms at predilection.

Toggle Century definitions Century Dictionary (2)

Toggle GNU Webster definitions GNU Webster's 1913 (1)

Toggle WordNet definitions WordNet (3)

Toggle elsewhere links Elsewhere on the web

View all »
Examples (50)

  • This propensity was a love of sport, especially if indulged secretly, unlawfully, and at the expense of somebody else; in a word, they were arrant poachers, the man in fact, the boy at heart. —  Dr. Jolliffe's Boys
  • The demonstration I shall give will only be a repetition of the preceding one, for the problems are one and the same Men have a natural propensity to make the best bargain they can, when not prevented by an opposing force; that is, they like to obtain as much as they possibly can for their labour, whether the advantage is obtained from a foreign producer or a skilful mechanical producer The theoretical objection which is made to this propensity is the same in both cases. —  Essays on Political Economy
  • For what other means can exist for arresting a propensity which is natural to all men, but that of depriving them of their liberty In many countries, it is true, the legislator strikes at only one of these competitions, and confines himself to grumbling at the other. —  Essays on Political Economy
  • This propensity is as subservient to the advancement of private interests in the one as in the other, and those who direct them both, being principally guided by the same views and influenced by the same motives, will be equally ready to stimulate extravagance of enterprise by improvidence of credit. —  A Compilation of the Messages and Papers of the Presidents Volume 3, part 2: Martin Van Buren
  • Partisans of realism tell us that this propensity is a weakness, a fault; and such it is, beyond question, whenever it leads to forced and stagy contrasts. —  The Life and Works of Friedrich Schiller
 

Tags

Sign up or sign in to add tags.

Stats

This word has been looked up 331 times.

On Twitter

Photos from

flickr images

Add a related word »
Related

Roget's II Roget's II: The New Thesaurus

Allen's Allen's Synonyms and Antonyms

Used in the same context Used in the Same Context

Roget's II: The New Thesaurus, Third Edition by the Editors of the American Heritage® Dictionary. Copyright © 2003, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Etymologies (2)

Toggle American Heritage etymologies American Heritage Dictionary (1)

  1. From propense, inclined, from Latin prōpēnsus, past participle of prōpendēre, to be inclined; see propend.

Toggle Century etymologies Century Dictionary (1)

  1. = Italian propensità; as propense + -ity.
 

Pronunciations
Record your own »

/prəˈpɛnsəti/
by American Heritage

Charts

frequency chart

Bubble size: how much this word was used in a year

Bubble height: used more or less than expected, vs. all uses evenly distributed

You can expect to see this word about twice a month.

Recently looked up

chapel · amity · marsh · dervish · imp

Recent Favorites

pygopagus · sanglant · Astacus · sweetbread · qualms

Recent Pronunciations

eu oi oìa u ou e u oìa · the octopi are dry · Kansas City · spell it rite · put it in your pocket