| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition. 2000. |
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| prevail |
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| SYLLABICATION: | pre·vail |
| PRONUNCIATION: |  pr -v l |
| INTRANSITIVE VERB: | Inflected forms: pre·vailed, pre·vail·ing, pre·vails
1. To be greater in strength or influence; triumph: prevailed against the enemy. 2. To be or become effective; win out: hoped justice would prevail. 3. To be most common or frequent; be predominant: a region where snow and ice prevail. 4. To be in force, use, or effect; be current: an ancient tradition that still prevails. 5. To use persuasion or inducement successfully. Often used with on, upon, or with. See synonyms at persuade. | | ETYMOLOGY: | Middle English prevailen, from Old French prevaloir, prevaill-, from Latin praeval re, to be stronger : prae-, pre- + valre, to be strong; see wal- in Appendix I. | | OTHER FORMS: | pre·vailer —NOUN
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| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. Copyright © 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by the Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
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