tendency
noun OPAL WOPAL S
/ˈtendənsi/
/ˈtendənsi/
(plural tendencies)
- to display artistic tendencies
- tendency to do something I have a tendency to talk too much when I'm nervous.
- This material has a tendency to shrink when washed.
- tendency for somebody/something to do something There is a tendency for this disease to run in families.
- tendency to/towards something She has a strong natural tendency towards caution.
Extra Examples- Several patients admitted to suicidal tendencies.
- The later model has an unfortunate tendency to collapse after a few weeks' use.
- a worrying tendency among the abused to become abusers
- our natural human tendency to group all the things we don't like together
- The natural tendency is to try harder when there are problems with a project.
- We have a tendency to blame ourselves when things go wrong.
- The training courses aim to reduce the tendency for young people to leave the industry.
- They have a tendency towards over-optimism.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- clear
- great
- marked
- …
- have
- display
- exhibit
- …
- tendency among
- tendency for
- tendency on the part of
- …
- tendency (for somebody/something) (to do something) There's a growing tendency for women to marry later.
- tendency to/towards something Industry showed a tendency towards increasingly centralized administration.
Extra Examples- There is a growing tendency among employers to hire casual staff.
- There is a tendency for farm sizes to increase.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- clear
- great
- marked
- …
- have
- display
- exhibit
- …
- tendency among
- tendency for
- tendency on the part of
- …
- [countable + singular or plural verb] (British English) a group within a larger political group, whose views are more extreme than those of the rest of the group
- a growing separatist tendency within the Anglo-Irish community
Word Originearly 17th cent.: from medieval Latin tendentia, from tendere ‘to stretch’.