Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

lion's share

/ˈlaɪ.ənz ʃɛ(ə)ɹ/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.18 in modern English

Syllables: li-on's share
IPA: /ˈlaɪ.ənz ʃɛ(ə)ɹ/

13

Scrabble Score

10

Letters

2

Syllables

9

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

The majority; a large or generous portion.

Example Sentences

"They got a large donation, but the lion’s share of the money went straight into paying off debt."
"In place of dividing the merit of the discovery between the Englishman and the Scotchman, and giving the lion's share to my countryman, I have given the whole merit of the discovery to [Henry] Cavendish the Englishman, and have reserved only for [James] Watt the Scotchman, the merit of the previous hypothesis,—a merit freely given him by Cavendish himself, and one which no other person ever claimed."
"But when a fortunate section of them should begin to win lions' shares of the spoil through superior aptitude for the struggle, can we doubt in what direction the disappointed ones would seek for consolation and support?"
"But England suffered great damage, and was put to very heavy expense in compelling restitution. She voluntarily surrendered all claim to the lion's share of the prize, though she certainly did the lion's share of the work, and bore the lion's share of the expense."
"The real cause of poverty in Europe is the great wealth of the few. The masses always be poor when a few kings and nobles hoard such enormous lion's shares."
"You would have the lion's share of everything. Now for myself I intend to have the lion's share. And why shouldn't I? Isn't it about time some woman had it? You can't have the lion's share if you are not free. I mean to be free. If I marry I shall want a husband that is not a prison …"

Etymology

From Aesop’s fable The Lion's Share, in which a lion claims the full amount of the spoil after hunting with a number of other beasts. In one version of the fable, the lion claims three-quarters of the kill rather than the whole, leaving the three other animals to fight over the remainder.

Regional Pronunciation

American English: /ˈlaɪ.ənz ʃɛ(ə)ɹ/
British English: /ˈlaɪ.əns ʃɛə/

Inflected Forms

the lion's share (canonical) lion's shares (plural) lions' shares (plural)

Synonyms

leonine share

Questions

How do you pronounce lion's share?: The recorded pronunciation is /ˈlaɪ.ənz ʃɛ(ə)ɹ/.
What does lion's share mean?: The majority; a large or generous portion.
Where does lion's share come from?: From Aesop’s fable The Lion's Share, in which a lion claims the full amount of the spoil after hunting with a number of other beasts. In one version of the fable, the lion claims three-quarters of the kill rather than the whole, leaving the three other animals to fight over the remainder.

How to pronounce lion's share

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