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Can these expressions be used interchangeably? Do they mean exactly the same or is there any subtle difference in meaning?

Most cars run on gasoline.

The majority of cars runs on gasoline.

A majority of cars runs on gasoline.

Thank you.

  • The majority and A majority both are different due to the articles before them. Most means The majority of – Sam Sep 29 '22 at 06:06
  • Thank you. What is the difference between "the majority of" and "a majority of"? –  Sep 29 '22 at 06:59
  • Similar question is available in this site, you can go through. – Sam Sep 29 '22 at 07:18
  • I cannot find it. –  Sep 29 '22 at 07:41
  • You can google "A majority of vs The majority of", you must find it. – Sam Sep 29 '22 at 07:59
  • https://ell.stackexchange.com/questions/38244/what-is-the-difference-in-meaning-between-a-majority-of-and-the-majority-of –  Sep 29 '22 at 08:01
  • The answers in the link are hesitant, inconsistent and inconclusive. I don't know if I have to use the majority of or a majority of. –  Sep 29 '22 at 08:12
  • @pierrot5 part of the reason the answers are "hesitant, inconsistent and inconclusive" is that there really isn't much of a difference between "a majority" and "the majority." Technically they refer to slightly different things, but can pretty much always substitute for each other. – Esther Sep 29 '22 at 17:13

1 Answers1

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In most contexts, both mean the same thing - more than half.

Traditionally, 'majority' is only used with countable nouns (cars, people etc), whereas you could use 'most' for non-countable nouns (eg "most of the water spilt").

However, like the historic difference between 'fewer' and 'less', the rules are not always strictly obeyed in everyday speech and even in less formal written English. In any case, 'majority' has always been used with percentages, so if you spilt more than 50% of some water you could rightly say the majority of it spilt.

Astralbee
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