Definitions for tendency
ˈtɛn dən siten·den·cy

Princeton's WordNet(3.67 / 3 votes)Rate this definition:

1. inclination, disposition, tendency(noun)

   an attitude of mind especially one that favors one alternative over others

   "he had an inclination to give up too easily"; "a tendency to be too strict"

2. leaning, propensity, tendency(noun)

   an inclination to do something

   "he felt leanings toward frivolity"

3. tendency, inclination(noun)

   a characteristic likelihood of or natural disposition toward a certain condition or character or effect

   "the alkaline inclination of the local waters"; "fabric with a tendency to shrink"

4. tendency, trend(noun)

   a general direction in which something tends to move

   "the shoreward tendency of the current"; "the trend of the stock market"

Wiktionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. tendency(Noun)

   a likelihood of behaving in a particular way or going in a particular direction; a tending toward.

   Denim has a tendency to fade.

Origin: Ultimately from the Latin tendere / tendō.

Webster Dictionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Tendency(noun)

   direction or course toward any place, object, effect, or result; drift; causal or efficient influence to bring about an effect or result

British National Corpus

1. Spoken Corpus Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'tendency' in Spoken Corpus Frequency: #3329

2. Written Corpus Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'tendency' in Written Corpus Frequency: #4589

3. Nouns Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'tendency' in Nouns Frequency: #1204

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of tendency in Chaldean Numerology is: 5

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of tendency in Pythagorean Numerology is: 9

Examples of tendency in a Sentence

1. Anonymous:

   I am a Marxist--of the Groucho tendency.

2. James Fenimore Cooper:

   The tendency of democracies is, in all things, to mediocrity.

3. David Searles:

   The tendency of an event to occur varies inversely with one's preparation for it.

4. Zoltan Backsay:

   Humans have a tendency to be irresponsible sometimes, it doesn’t belong in our neighborhood.

5. Arnold Toynbee:

   Civilizations in decline are consistently characterised by a tendency towards standardization and uniformity.

Images & Illustrations of tendency

Popularity rank by frequency of use