minority

/məˈnɔrədi/

/mɪˈnɔrɪti/

Other forms: minorities

If you have eight pennies and twelve dimes, the minority — or smaller portion — of your coins are pennies.

If you're left-handed, you are in the minority, because most people are right-handed. That means that right-handed people are the majority (the opposite of minority). Minority is typically used to refer to the smaller of two numbers being compared or to a group of people that is not predominant in a particular country or population. Less commonly, it refers to the time period before someone is of legal age.

Definitions of minority

1. noun

   being or relating to the smaller in number of two parts
   “when the vote was taken they were in the minority”

   “he held a minority position”

   antonyms:

   majority

   the property resulting from being or relating to the greater in number of two parts; the main part

   type of:

   figure, number

   the property possessed by a sum or total or indefinite quantity of units or individuals
2. noun

   a group of people who differ racially or politically from a larger group of which it is a part
   type of:

   social group

   people sharing some social relation
3. noun

   any age prior to the legal age
   synonyms: nonage

   antonyms:

   majority

   the age at which persons are considered competent to manage their own affairs

   type of:

   legal status

   a status defined by law

   age, eld

   a time of life (usually defined in years) at which some particular qualification or power arises