tendency Hear it!

tendency Definition

tend·ency (ten′dən sē)

noun pl. -·cies

  1. an inclination to move or act in a particular direction or way; constant disposition to some action or state; leaning; bias; propensity; bent
  2. a course or apparent course toward some purpose, object, or result; drift
  3. a definite purpose or point of view in something said or written

Etymology: ML tendentia < L tendens, prp. of tendere, to tend

tendency Synonyms

tendency

n.

  1. Direction

    drift, aim, bent, trend, current; see also drift 1.

  2. Inclination

    leaning, tenor, bias, bent; see inclination 1.

tendency refers to an inclination or disposition to move in a particular direction or act in a certain way, esp. as a result of some inherent quality or habit he has a tendency toward exaggeration; trend suggests a general direction, with neither a definite course nor goal, subject to change or fluctuation by some external force a recent trend in literature; current differs from trend in connoting a clearly defined course, but one also subject to change the current of one's life; drift refers either to the course along which something is being carried or driven the drift toward absolute conformity or to a course taken by something that has unstated or unclear implications what is the drift of this argument?; tenor, equivalent in this connection to drift, connotes more strongly the clarity or purport of the unstated purpose or objective the general tenor of the Bill of Rights

tendency Usage Examples

Preposition: towards

  • violence: They also found that a tendency toward violence or recklessness was directly related to having more sexual partners.

Converse of object

  • actualise: The actualising tendency is the motive for changing circumstances that result in " doing better.
  • inherit: No test can show whether you have inherited the tendency for nodal or knee osteoarthritis.
  • counteract: The best way to counteract tendencies toward bureaucratism is unrestricted criticism.
  • centralize: This is, after all, a government with one of the most centralizing tendencies in recent history.
  • resist: In the case of shops, designers should resist the tendency to neglect all that occurs above the fascia.
  • reinforce: The impasses created by the EU's present strategic choices reinforce these tendencies.

Preposition: in

  • literature: There is a tendency in the literature to associate Mackie's model of causality with a deterministic view of the universe.

Adjective modifier

  • suicidal: I think I still had depressive and suicidal tendencies but never did anything again.
  • latent: Samatha can purify the mind, but it cannot eradicate unwholesome latent tendencies.
  • marked: It has often been observed that Persian art has a marked decorative tendency.
  • centrifugal: There is a standing centrifugal tendency in the church from Paul to Luke.
  • unfortunate: Throughout the remainder of this chapter there is an unfortunate tendency to treat myth as history.
  • authoritarian: The dangers of Mr Blair's authoritarian tendencies are amplified by the nature of those about him.

Noun used with modifier

  • separatist: Out of this separatist tendency came the Baptist church.
  • protectionist: Secondly, by avoiding protectionist tendencies when trade imbalances begin to appear.
  • donna: Rainmakers with prima donna tendencies can be helped to adopt this view.
  • reductionist: Positively Healthy believes that this reductionist tendency loses much personal data that cannot be turned into mere numbers.
  • anarchist: He pitches his piece, most basically, as a comparison of two viewpoints, " two anarchist tendencies.
  • action: This in turn predisposes to certain types of perceptions and action tendencies.