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major
From Wiktionary, the free dictionary
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English
Alternative forms
Etymology
From Middle English major, from Latin maior, comparative of magnus (“great, large; noble, important”), from Proto-Indo-European *méǵh₂yōs (“greater”), comparative of *meǵh₂- (“great”). Compare West Frisian majoar (“major”), Dutch majoor (“major”), French majeur. Doublet of mayor.
Pronunciation
- enPR: mā'jə(r) IPA(key): /ˈmeɪ.d͡ʒə(ɹ)/
- (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): [ˈmeɪ̯d͡ʒə(ɹ)]
- (Standard Southern British) IPA(key): [ˈmɛjd͡ʒə(ɹ)]
- (General American, Canada) IPA(key): [ˈmeɪ̯d͡ʒɚ]
Audio (Southern California): (file)
- (Canada) IPA(key): [ˈmeːd͡ʒɚ]
- (General Australian, New Zealand) IPA(key): [ˈmæɪ̯d͡ʒə(ɹ)]
Audio (Queensland): (file)
- Rhymes: -eɪdʒə(ɹ)
Adjective
major (comparative more major, superlative most major)
- (attributive):
- Greater in dignity, rank, importance, significance, or interest.
- 2013 June 13, Karen McVeigh, “US supreme court rules human genes cannot be patented”, in The Guardian Weekly, volume 189, number 2, page 10:
- The US supreme court has ruled unanimously that natural human genes cannot be patented, a decision that scientists and civil rights campaigners said removed a major barrier to patient care and medical innovation.
- Greater in number, quantity, or extent.
- Synonym: main
- the major part of the assembly
- Notable or conspicuous in effect or scope.
- Synonym: considerable
- Prominent or significant in size, amount, or degree.
- to earn some major cash
- a major exhibition
- 1995, “I Got 5 on It”, in Operation Stackola, performed by Luniz:
- I gotta take a whiz test to my PO / I know I failed 'cause I done smoked major weed, bro
- 1995, Paul Vautin, Turn It Up!, Sydney: Pan Macmillan Australia, page 129:
- [B]y the time I turned back to the screen, Jamie was fully dressed, major bummer.
- (medicine) Involving great risk, serious, life-threatening.
- to suffer from a major illness
- Greater in dignity, rank, importance, significance, or interest.
- Of full legal age, having attained majority.
- major children
- (education) Of or relating to a subject of academic study chosen as a field of specialization.
- (music):
- Having intervals of a semitone between the third and fourth, and seventh and eighth degrees. (of a scale)
- major scale
- Equivalent to that between the tonic and another note of a major scale, and greater by a semitone than the corresponding minor interval. (of an interval)
- major third
- Having a major third above the root.
- major triad
- (postpositive) (of a key) Based on a major scale, tending to produce a bright or joyful effect.
- (campanology) Bell changes rung on eight bells.
- Having intervals of a semitone between the third and fourth, and seventh and eighth degrees. (of a scale)
- (UK, dated) Indicating the elder of two brothers (or the eldest of three), appended to a surname in public schools.
- (logic)
- Occurring as the predicate in the conclusion of a categorical syllogism. (of a term)
- Containing the major term in a categorical syllogism. (of a premise)
Antonyms
Derived terms
- A-flat major
- aid-major
- A major
- A-sharp major
- Asia Major
- B-flat major
- B major
- brigade major
- C-flat major
- C major
- comajor
- C-sharp major
- Daphne Major
- D-flat major
- D major
- E-flat major
- E major
- F-flat major
- fife major
- F major
- F-sharp major
- generalmajor
- G-flat major
- G major
- G-sharp major
- in a major key
- Llantwit Major
- majorally
- major appliance
- major arcana
- majorate
- major axis
- major chord
- major depressive disorder
- major diameter
- major element
- majoress
- major general
- major interval
- majorise
- majoritarily
- majority
- majorization
- major junior
- major key
- major league
- majorly
- major mode
- major ninth
- major party
- major piece
- major planet
- major premise
- major prophet
- major scale
- major score
- major second
- major seventh
- major seventh chord
- major sixth
- major suit
- major term
- major third
- major triad
- semimajor
- sergeant major
- St Brides Major
- St Columb Major
- submajor
- supermajor
- surgeon major
Related terms
- état major
- labia major
- pectoralis major
- psoas major
- rectus capitis posterior major
- rhomboid major
- teres major
- vis major
- zygomaticus major
Translations
greater in significance or importance — see also considerable, significant, important, great, principal
|
greater in number, quantity, or extent
|
of full legal age; having attained majority
|
music: of a scale
|
music: of an interval
music: containing the note which is a major third above the tonic
- The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.
Noun
major (plural majors)
- (military) A rank of officer in the army and the US air force, between captain and lieutenant colonel.
- He used to be a major in the army.
- An officer in charge of a section of band instruments, used with a modifier.
- Meronyms: drum major, trumpet major
- A person of legal age.
- Antonym: minor
- (music):
- Ellipsis of major key.
- Ellipsis of major interval.
- Ellipsis of major scale.
- (campanology) A system of change-ringing using eight bells.
- A large, commercially successful company, especially a record label that is bigger than an indie.
- 1997, Dominic Pride, “U.S. success caps global impact of XL's prodigy”, in Billboard, volume 109, number 30, page 86:
- At the end of last year, the band re-signed to XL for another three albums, despite being chased by majors that included Island, says manager Mike Champion of Midi Management.
- (education, Canada, US, Australia, New Zealand) The principal subject or course of a student working toward a degree at a college or university.
- Synonym: (UK) course
- Midway through his second year of college, he still hadn't chosen a major.
- A student at a college or university specializing on a given area of study.
- She is a math major.
- (logic):
- Ellipsis of major term.
- Ellipsis of major premise.
- (bridge) Ellipsis of major suit.
- (Canadian football) A touchdown, or major score.
- (Australian rules football) A goal.
- (British slang, dated) An elder brother (especially at a public school).
- (entomology) A large leaf-cutter ant that acts as a soldier, defending the nest.
- (obsolete) Alternative form of mayor and mair.
Derived terms
Translations
military rank
|
person of legal age
|
principal subject or course
|
student specializing in a specified subject
major premise — see major premise
Verb
major (third-person singular simple present majors, present participle majoring, simple past and past participle majored)
- (intransitive) Used in a phrasal verb: major in.
Derived terms
Related terms
Translations
Translations
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- The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.
Translations to be checked
|
References
- “major”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.
- “major”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.
Anagrams
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Catalan
Etymology
Pronunciation
Adjective
major m or f (masculine and feminine plural majors)
- larger (superlative: el major / la major—largest)
- older (superlative: el major / la major—oldest)
- main, principal
- (music) major
Derived terms
Related terms
Noun
major m (plural majors)
Noun
major m or f by sense (plural majors)
Further reading
- “major”, in Diccionari de la llengua catalana [Dictionary of the Catalan Language] (in Catalan), second edition, Institute of Catalan Studies [Catalan: Institut d'Estudis Catalans], April 2007
- “major”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2025
- “major” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua.
- “major” in Diccionari català-valencià-balear, Antoni Maria Alcover and Francesc de Borja Moll, 1962.
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Czech
Pronunciation
Noun
major m anim (relational adjective majorský)
Declension
Declension of major (hard masculine animate)
Derived terms
- majorka f
Further reading
- “major”, in Příruční slovník jazyka českého (in Czech), 1935–1957
- “major”, in Slovník spisovného jazyka českého (in Czech), 1960–1971, 1989
Estonian
Etymology
Noun
major (genitive majori, partitive majorit)
- major (rank)
Declension
Derived terms
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French
Etymology
From Middle French major, from Spanish mayor, from Latin maior. Doublet of maire, majeur, and mayeur. The use for a non-commissioned officer in the French army (since 1972) is a short form of adjudant-major or sergent-major.
Pronunciation
Noun
major m or f (plural majors) (military)
- (France) the highest non-commissioned officer rank: sergeant major, “major”
- Coordinate terms: (other armies) adjudant-chef, adjudant-major
- (North America, Belgium, Switzerland, Luxembourg, DRC) major (field officer rank)
- Coordinate terms: (French army) commandant, chef, (navies) capitaine de corvette
Derived terms
Further reading
- “major”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.
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Polish
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Serbo-Croatian
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