Prejudice Meaning
/ˈpɹɛd͡ʒədɪs/Definition, CEFR level C1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
nounAn adverse judgment or opinion formed beforehand or without knowledge of the facts.
nounA preconception, any preconceived opinion or feeling, whether positive or negative.
Sentence Examples
I don't have a prejudice against foreign workers.
Intellectually we know prejudice is wrong.
They fought a long battle against prejudice and ignorance.
Synonyms & Antonyms
Synonyms:
Antonyms:
None
CEFR Practice Quiz
She experienced ____ when coworkers made rude comments about her background at work.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The court ruled that the defendant had been treated unfairly due to racial ____ by the arresting officer.
Word Origin & History
From Middle English prejudice, from Old French prejudice, derived from Latin praeiūdicium (“previous judgment or damage”), from prae- (“before”) + iūdicium (“judgment”).
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"Many of the inhabitants of our Eastern States refuse to eat Squirrels of any kind, from some prejudice or other; but we can assure our readers that the flesh of this species, and many others, is both tender and well-flavoured, and when nicely broiled, does not require a hunter’s appetite to recommend it."
— 1846, John James Audubon, John Bachman, The Viviparous Quadrupeds of North America:
"Though often misled by prejudice and passion, he was emphatically an honest man."
— 1849–1861, Thomas Babington Macaulay, chapter VII, in The History of England from the Accession of James the Second, volume (please specify |volume=I to V), London: Longman, Brown, Green, and Longmans, →OCLC:
""I did not thoroughly understand what you were telling your brother," cried Emma, "about your friend Mr. Graham's intending to have a bailiff from Scotland, to look after his new estate. But will it answer? Will not the old prejudice be too strong?""
— 1816, Jane Austen, Emma:
"[…] the first did in the forepart sit, / That nought mote hinder his quicke preiudize: / He had a sharpe foresight, and working wit […]"
— 1590, Edmund Spenser, “Book II, Canto IX”, in The Faerie Queene. […], London: […] [John Wolfe] for William Ponsonbie, →OCLC:
"England and France might, through their amity, / Breed him some prejudice."
— 1613 (date written), William Shakespeare, [John Fletcher], “The Famous History of the Life of King Henry the Eight”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act I, scene i]:
Explore More C1 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
She experienced ____ when coworkers made rude comments about her background at work.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The court ruled that the defendant had been treated unfairly due to racial ____ by the arresting officer.