prejudice

[prej-uh-dis]

noun

1. an unfavorable opinion or feeling formed beforehand or without knowledge, thought, or reason.

2. any preconceived opinion or feeling, either favorable or unfavorable.

   Synonyms: predisposition, predilection, partiality, preconception

3. unreasonable feelings, opinions, or attitudes, especially of a hostile nature, regarding an ethnic, racial, social, or religious group.

4. such attitudes considered collectively.

   The war against prejudice is never-ending.

5. damage or injury; detriment.

   a law that operated to the prejudice of the majority.

verb (used with object)

prejudiced, prejudicing 

1. to affect with a prejudice, either favorable or unfavorable.

   His honesty and sincerity prejudiced us in his favor.

   Synonyms: influence, bias

prejudice

/ ˈprɛdʒʊdɪs /

noun

1. an opinion formed beforehand, esp an unfavourable one based on inadequate facts

2. the act or condition of holding such opinions

3. intolerance of or dislike for people of a specific race, religion, etc

4. disadvantage or injury resulting from prejudice

5. to the detriment of

6. law without dismissing or detracting from an existing right or claim

verb

1. to cause to be prejudiced

2. to disadvantage or injure by prejudice

prejudice

1. A hostile opinion about some person or class of persons. Prejudice is socially learned and is usually grounded in misconception, misunderstanding, and inflexible generalizations. In particular, African-Americans have been victims of prejudice on a variety of social, economic, and political levels. (See civil rights movement and segregation.)

Other Word Forms

• prejudicedly adverb
• prejudiceless adjective
• nonprejudiced adjective
• quasi-prejudiced adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of prejudice¹

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English, from Old French, from Latin praejūdicium “prejudgment,” originally “preliminary or previous judicial inquiry,” equivalent to prae- pre- + jūdicium “legal proceedings, judging” ( jūdic-, stem of jūdex judge + -ium -ium )

Word History and Origins

Origin of prejudice¹

C13: from Old French préjudice, from Latin praejūdicium a preceding judgment, disadvantage, from prae before + jūdicium trial, sentence, from jūdex a judge

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. without prejudice, without dismissing, damaging, or otherwise affecting a legal interest or demand.

Synonym Study

See bias.

Example Sentences

In English law, posts on social media can be deemed capable of prejudicing a jury - and therefore influencing the outcome of a trial.

From BBC

In recent years, campaigners have challenged the widely-held notion that fairer is better, but they say it's not easy to counter deeply entrenched prejudices.

From BBC

However, there is speculation that Kim has introduced his daughter at this point to try to overcome prejudice in the deeply patriarchal state, which has never been led by a woman.

From BBC

Mr Patel said he did not know where the money was and did not want to discuss what happened, in case it prejudiced any future court case against Vashi.

From BBC

The woman — identified in court documents as “Jane Doe” — dropped her complaint against Allen in March 2024 after reaching a settlement with the singer, and eventually dismissed the case with prejudice in October 2024.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• animosity 
• bias 
• bigotry 
• chauvinism 
• discrimination 
• enmity 
• injustice 
• intolerance 
• preconception 
• predilection 
• predisposition 
• racism 
• sexism 
• xenophobia 

When To Use

What does prejudice mean?

Prejudice is a bias or a preconceived opinion, idea, or belief about something.When you act based on prejudice, you make up your mind about something and make generalizations about it before fully knowing about it. Though a prejudice can be positive, the word most often refers to unfair and strongly held negative judgments—especially hostile judgments about certain people.Prejudice can refer to a specific instance of such a belief, as in He clearly has a prejudice against people of color, or such beliefs collectively, as in We need to eliminate prejudice from society. Prejudice against people can be based on many parts of their identity, including race, ethnicity, religion, gender or gender identity, sexuality, and language. Such prejudices often create stereotypes about members of such groups.A common and widespread form of prejudice is racism, in which a person believes in the superiority of what they consider to be their own “race” over others. This most often takes the form of believing that those with other skin colors—especially darker skin colors—are inferior physically, intellectually, morally, and/or culturally, and mistreating and discriminating against them because of this. However, the word racism is often used to refer to more than just a prejudice or an active hatred but to a system of oppression based on such prejudice (often called systemic racism or institutional racism).Someone who has a prejudice against others can be described as prejudiced. Unfair treatment based on prejudice or causing prejudice can be described as prejudicial.Less commonly, the word prejudice can also be used as a verb meaning to cause to be prejudiced against someone or something, as in Bad press has prejudiced many voters against the candidate.