Origin of the word major

major (adj.) 1300, majour, “greater, more important or effective, leading, principal,” from Latin maior (earlier *magios), irregular comparative of magnus “large, great” (from PIE root *meg- “great”). Major league, in baseball, is attested by 1892.

What is the base word of major?

WATCH NOW: What Is The Origin Of The Word “Major”? Major, similar to its latin derivative magnus, means “great in size, extent, or importance.”

What is Maior?

British English: bigger /ˈbɪɡə/ ADJECTIVE. A bigger person or thing is larger in physical size than another person or thing.

What is the meaning of majored?

adj. 1. Greater than others in importance or rank: a major artist. 2. Great in scope or effect: a major improvement.

What does minored mean?

adj. 1. Lesser or smaller in amount, extent, or size. 2. Lesser in importance, rank, or stature: a minor politician.

What’s your major means?

A major is a chosen field of study, the specialization of the student. For example: “I’m an American studies major.” One can also use the verb study to talk about one’s major. For example: “I’m studying biology” and “I study biology” both show the student’s major.

What is a major person?

1 : a person who has attained majority. 2a : one that is superior in rank, importance, size, or performance economic power of the oil majors. b : a major musical interval, scale, key, or mode.

What is major ment?

adjective [ADJECTIVE noun] You use major when you want to describe something that is more important, serious, or significant than other things in a group or situation. The major factor in the decision to stay or to leave was usually professional.

What is a major degree?

A major is simply a specific subject that students can specialize in while aspiring to a college degree. Typically, between a third and half of the courses you take in college are in your major or related to it. By completing a major, you demonstrate sustained, high-level work in one subject.

What does Major mean in school?

What is a “Major?” The area of study you focus on while pursuing your degree is often referred to as your major. Majors consist of a group of core classes as well as any additional requirements determined by your degree program.

What is second major in job application?

A double major that relates to the job you are applying for shows employers that you have extensive knowledge and qualifications in your field, which can help you stand out from other candidates. In this article, learn the best ways to write your double major on a resume with tips, templates and examples to guide you.

What is CV major name?

Your academic major should be prominently displayed on your resume to draw attention to your course of study. Listing the major is almost as important as stating the type of degree you earned, like a bachelor of arts (BA), bachelor of science (BS) or a specialized degree like bachelor of science in nursing (BSN).

What is degree type?

Most students earn a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) or Bachelor of Science degree (B.S.). Other types of bachelor’s degrees include the Bachelor of Fine Arts or Bachelor of Architecture degree. Graduate degrees are advanced degrees pursued after earning a bachelor’s degree. A doctoral degree (for example, a Ph.

Is a PhD better than a doctorate?

The essential difference between a PhD and a professional doctorate is that the possessor of a PhD has demonstrated the ability to use research skills to create original knowledge that contributes to the research and theory in a field, and a possessor of a professional doctorate has demonstrated the ability to evaluate …

Do PhD students get paid?

Some will receive a stipend; others will pay their own way. Some PhDs involve only research, some require classes and examinations and some require the student to teach undergraduates. One thing many PhD students have in common is dissatisfaction. Some describe their work as “slave labour”.

Is DSc higher than PhD?

A DSc is a doctorate in science, and is not awarded for literature, law, divinity, or music, each of which has its own dedicated higher doctorate. The DSc is a higher doctorate than a PhD, in England. In some other countries, they’re equivalent. Both get the honorific title doctor.

Can PhD be completed in 2 years?

A select group of students complete their PhDs in two years, while a tiny number of elite students can get it done in 12 months. It’s hard to overstate how rare and impressive this is, but it is always a possibility. The key to a fast-track PhD is building up a strong academic CV before you even start.

English[edit]

Alternative forms[edit]

• majour (obsolete)

Etymology[edit]

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[edit]

• enPR: mā’jə(r)
• IPA^(key): /ˈmeɪ.d͡ʒə(ɹ)/
• Rhymes: -eɪd͡ʒə(ɹ)

Adjective[edit]

major (comparative more major, superlative most major)

1. (attributive):
   1. Greater in dignity, rank, importance, significance, or interest.
   2. Greater in number, quantity, or extent.

      the major part of the assembly

      Synonym: main

   3. Notable or conspicuous in effect or scope.

      Synonym: considerable

   4. Prominent or significant in size, amount, or degree.

      to earn some major cash

   5. (medicine) Involving great risk, serious, life-threatening.

      to suffer from a major illness

2. Of full legal age, having attained majority.

   major children

3. (education) Of or relating to a subject of academic study chosen as a field of specialization.
4. (music):
   1. (of a scale) Having intervals of a semitone between the third and fourth, and seventh and eighth degrees.

      major scale

   2. (of an interval) Equivalent to that between the tonic and another note of a major scale, and greater by a semitone than the corresponding minor interval.

      major third

      1. Having a major third above the root.

         major triad

   3. (postpositive) (of a key) Based on a major scale, tending to produce a bright or joyful effect.
   4. (campanology) Bell changes rung on eight bells.
5. (UK, dated) Indicating the elder of two brothers, appended to a surname in public schools.
6. (logic)
   1. (of a term) Occurring as the predicate in the conclusion of a categorical syllogism.
   2. (of a premise) Containing the major term in a categorical syllogism.

Antonyms[edit]

• minor

Derived terms[edit]

[edit]

Translations[edit]

Noun[edit]

major (plural majors)

1. (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.

   1. An officer in charge of a section of band instruments, used with a modifier.

      Meronyms: drum major, trumpet major

2. A person of legal age.

   Antonym: minor

3. (music):
   1. Ellipsis of major key..
   2. Ellipsis of major interval..
   3. Ellipsis of major scale..
   4. (campanology) A system of change-ringing using eight bells.
4. 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^[2], 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.

5. (education, Canada, US, Australia, New Zealand) The principal subject or course of a student working toward a degree at a college or university.

   Midway through his second year of college, he still hadn’t chosen a major.

   Synonym: (UK) course

   1. A student at a college or university specializing on a given area of study.

      She is a math major.

6. (logic):
   1. Ellipsis of major term..
   2. Ellipsis of major premise..
7. (bridge) Ellipsis of major suit..
8. (Canadian football) A touchdown, or major score.
9. (Australian rules football) A goal.
10. (British slang, dated) An elder brother (especially at a public school).
11. (entomology) A large leaf-cutter ant that acts as a soldier, defending the nest.
12. (obsolete) Alternative form of mayor and mair.

Derived terms[edit]

Translations[edit]

Verb[edit]

major (third-person singular simple present majors, present participle majoring, simple past and past participle majored)

1. (intransitive) Used in a phrasal verb: major in.

[edit]

• majorant

Translations[edit]

References[edit]

• “major”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.
• “major”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.

Anagrams[edit]

• Jarmo, joram

Catalan[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Latin maior.

Pronunciation[edit]

• (Balearic, Central) IPA^(key): /məˈʒo/
• (Valencian) IPA^(key): /maˈd͡ʒoɾ/

Adjective[edit]

major (masculine and feminine plural majors)

1. larger (superlative: el major / la major—largest)
2. older (superlative: el major / la major—oldest)
3. main, principal
4. (music) major

Derived terms[edit]

• majorista
• majorment

[edit]

• majoria

Noun[edit]

major m (plural majors)

1. (military) major

Noun[edit]

major m or f (plural majors)

1. of age, adult

Further reading[edit]

• “major” in Diccionari de la llengua catalana, segona edició, Institut d’Estudis Catalans.
• “major”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2023
• “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.

Czech[edit]

Noun[edit]

major m

1. major (military)

Declension[edit]

Further reading[edit]

• major in Příruční slovník jazyka českého, 1935–1957
• major in Slovník spisovného jazyka českého, 1960–1971, 1989

Estonian[edit]

Etymology[edit]

Borrowed from German Major, from Spanish, from Latin maior.

Noun[edit]

major (genitive majori, partitive majorit)

1. major (rank)

Declension[edit]

Derived terms[edit]

• kindralmajor

French[edit]

Etymology[edit]

Ultimately from Latin maior. Doublet of maire and majeur.

• (France): French military authorities created in 1972 the rank of major (non-commissioned officer), which can easily be confused with the rank of major (officer) used in many countries, creating problems when communicating with allied forces.
• (Canada): English major. From the British traditional army military rank structure.

Pronunciation[edit]

• IPA^(key): /ma.ʒɔʁ/

Noun[edit]

major m or f (plural majors)

1. (military, France) major, the upper rank of French non-commissioned officers
2. (military, Canada) major, the commissioned field officer rank

Coordinate terms[edit]

• capitaine de corvette (“capc”) (equivalent naval rank to the commissioned field officer rank)

Derived terms[edit]

Further reading[edit]

• “major”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

Hungarian[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From Bavarian [Term?], compare Middle High German meier, Old High German meior, meiū̌r, standard German Meier (“administrator or leaseholder of a manor”); ultimately from Latin maior (“greater; leader”). The semantic shift from the person to the place is unclear; either via their identification, or by a clipping of a derivation like majorság, majorház, majorszoba.^[1] The German equivalent terms for the place are Meierhof and Meierei (“feudal manor”).

Pronunciation[edit]

• IPA^(key): [ˈmɒjor]
• Hyphenation: ma‧jor
• Rhymes: -or

Noun[edit]

major (plural majorok)

1. farm

Declension[edit]

Inflection (stem in -o-, back harmony)
	singular	plural
nominative	major	majorok
accusative	majort	majorokat
dative	majornak	majoroknak
instrumental	majorral	majorokkal
causal-final	majorért	majorokért
translative	majorrá	majorokká
terminative	majorig	majorokig
essive-formal	majorként	majorokként
essive-modal	—	—
inessive	majorban	majorokban
superessive	majoron	majorokon
adessive	majornál	majoroknál
illative	majorba	majorokba
sublative	majorra	majorokra
allative	majorhoz	majorokhoz
elative	majorból	majorokból
delative	majorról	majorokról
ablative	majortól	majoroktól
non-attributive possessive — singular	majoré	majoroké
non-attributive possessive — plural	majoréi	majorokéi

Possessive forms of major
possessor	single possession	multiple possessions
1st person sing.	majorom	majorjaim
2nd person sing.	majorod	majorjaid
3rd person sing.	majorja	majorjai
1st person plural	majorunk	majorjaink
2nd person plural	majorotok	majorjaitok
3rd person plural	majorjuk	majorjaik

Derived terms[edit]

References[edit]

Further reading[edit]

• (farm): major in Bárczi, Géza and László Országh. A magyar nyelv értelmező szótára (‘The Explanatory Dictionary of the Hungarian Language’, abbr.: ÉrtSz.). Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó, 1959–1962. Fifth ed., 1992: →ISBN
• ([archaic] major [military rank]): major , redirecting to its synonym őrnagy in Bárczi, Géza and László Országh. A magyar nyelv értelmező szótára (‘The Explanatory Dictionary of the Hungarian Language’, abbr.: ÉrtSz.). Budapest: Akadémiai Kiadó, 1959–1962. Fifth ed., 1992: →ISBN

Interlingua[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

• IPA^(key): /maˈʒor/

Adjective[edit]

major (not comparable)

1. (comparative degree of grande) bigger

Latin[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

• (Classical) IPA^(key): /ˈmai̯.i̯or/, [ˈmäi̯ːɔr]
• (Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): /ˈma.jor/, [ˈmäːjor]

Adjective[edit]

major (neuter majus, positive magnus); third declension

1. Alternative spelling of maior.

Inflection[edit]

Third-declension comparative adjective.

Number	Singular		Plural
Case / Gender	Masc./Fem.	Neuter	Masc./Fem.	Neuter
Nominative	major	majus		majōrēs	majōra
Genitive	majōris	majōrum
Dative	majōrī	majōribus
Accusative	majōrem	majus	majōrēs	majōra
Ablative	majōre	majōribus
Vocative	major	majus	majōrēs	majōra

References[edit]

• “major”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• major in Charles du Fresne du Cange’s Glossarium Mediæ et Infimæ Latinitatis (augmented edition with additions by D. P. Carpenterius, Adelungius and others, edited by Léopold Favre, 1883–1887)

Polish[edit]

Etymology[edit]

Borrowed from German Major, from Latin māior. Doublet of mer (“mayor”).

Pronunciation[edit]

• IPA^(key): /ˈma.jɔr/
• Rhymes: -ajɔr
• Syllabification: ma‧jor

Noun[edit]

major m pers (abbreviation mjr)

1. major (military rank)

Declension[edit]

Further reading[edit]

• major in Wielki słownik języka polskiego, Instytut Języka Polskiego PAN
• major in Polish dictionaries at PWN

Portuguese[edit]

Etymology[edit]

Borrowed from Latin maior. Doublet of maior.

Pronunciation[edit]

Noun[edit]

major m (plural majores)

1. (military) major (military rank)

Romanian[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From French majeur, from Latin maior. Doublet of maior and possibly mare.

Adjective[edit]

major m or n (feminine singular majoră, masculine plural majori, feminine and neuter plural majore)

1. major (significant)

Declension[edit]

Serbo-Croatian[edit]

Etymology[edit]

From German Major, from Latin māior.

Pronunciation[edit]

• IPA^(key): /mǎjoːr/
• Hyphenation: ma‧jor

Noun[edit]

màjōr m (Cyrillic spelling ма̀јо̄р)

1. (military, Serbo-Croatian, Serbo-Croatian) major (rank)

Declension[edit]

Synonyms[edit]

• (Serbo-Croatian): bojnik
• tisućnik

Swedish[edit]

Pronunciation[edit]

Noun[edit]

major c

1. a major^[1]
2. a Squadron Leader^[1] (in the British Royal Air Force)

Declension[edit]

Declension of major
	Singular	Plural
Indefinite	Definite	Indefinite	Definite
Nominative	major	majoren	majorer	majorerna
Genitive	majors	majorens	majorers	majorernas

References[edit]

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Canada is preparing to play a major role in the continued stability and security of Afghanistan through ISAF.

Paul Cellucci

ETYMOLOGY OF THE WORD MAJOR

(Adj): from Latin, comparative of magnus great; C17 (n, in military sense): from French, short for sergeant major.

PRONUNCIATION OF MAJOR

GRAMMATICAL CATEGORY OF MAJOR

Major is a verb and can also act as a noun and an adjective.

WHAT DOES MAJOR MEAN IN ENGLISH?

Definition of major in the English dictionary

The first definition of major in the dictionary is an officer immediately junior to a lieutenant colonel. Other definition of major is a person who is superior in a group or class. Major is also a large or important company.

CONJUGATION OF THE VERB TO MAJOR

PRESENT

PAST

FUTURE

CONDITIONAL

IMPERATIVE

NONFINITE VERB FORMS

WORDS THAT RHYME WITH MAJOR

SYNONYMS OF «MAJOR»

The following words have a similar or identical meaning as «major» and belong to the same grammatical category.

TRANSLATION OF MAJOR

Find out the translation of major to 25 languages with our English multilingual translator.

TENDENCIES OF USE OF THE TERM «MAJOR»

The term «major» is very widely used and occupies the 1.562 position in our list of most widely used terms in the English dictionary.

Principal search tendencies and common uses of major

FREQUENCY OF USE OF THE TERM «MAJOR» OVER TIME

10 QUOTES WITH «MAJOR»

Famous quotes and sentences with the word major.

10 ENGLISH BOOKS RELATING TO «MAJOR»

Discover the use of major in the following bibliographical selection. Books relating to major and brief extracts from same to provide context of its use in English literature.

10 NEWS ITEMS WHICH INCLUDE THE TERM «MAJOR»

Find out what the national and international press are talking about and how the term major is used in the context of the following news items.

REFERENCE

« EDUCALINGO. Major [online]. Available <https://educalingo.com/en/dic-en/major>. Apr 2023 ».