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From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.44 [gcide]:
Prevail \Pre*vail"\, verb (used without an object) [imp. & p. p. {Prevailed}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Prevailing}.] [F. pr['e]valoir, OF. prevaleir, L. praevalere; prae before + valere to be strong, able, or worth. See {Valiant}.]
1. To overcome; to gain the victory or superiority; to gain the advantage; to have the upper hand, or the mastery; to succeed; -- sometimes with over or against.
When Moses held up his hand, Israel prevailed, and when he let down his hand, Amalek prevailed. --Ex. xvii. 11.
So David prevailed over the Philistine. --1 Sam. xvii. 50.
This kingdom could never prevail against the united power of England. --Swift.
2. To be in force; to have effect, power, or influence; to be predominant; to have currency or prevalence; to obtain; as, the practice prevails this day.
This custom makes the short-sighted bigots, and the warier skeptics, as far as it prevails. --Locke.
3. To persuade or induce; -- with on, upon, or with; as, I prevailedon him to wait.
He was prevailed with to restrain the Earl. --Clarendon.
Prevail upon some judicious friend to be your constant hearer, and allow him the utmost freedom. --Swift.
From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.44 [gcide]:
Prevailing \Pre*vail"ing\, adjective
1. Having superior force or influence; efficacious; persuasive. --Shak.
Saints shall assist thee with prevailing prayers. --Rowe.
2. Predominant; prevalent; most general; as, the prevailing disease of a climate; a prevailing opinion.
Syn: Syn. See {Prevalent}.
From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:
prevailing
adjective
1: most frequent or common; "prevailing winds" [syn: {predominant}]
2: encountered generally especially at the present time; "the prevailing opinion was that a trade war could be averted"; "the most prevalent religion in our area"; "speculation concerning the books author was rife" [syn: {prevalent}, {rife}]
From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0 [moby-thes]:
174 Moby Thesaurus words for "prevailing": abounding, abundant, accidental, accompanying, accustomed, ado, affecting, affluent, afloat, afoot, all-sufficing, ample, aplenty, arch, ascendant, average, banner, besetting, bottomless, bounteous, bountiful, capital, cardinal, central, champion, chief, circumstantial, common, commonplace, conquering, conventional, copious, crowning, current, customary, defeating, diffuse, doing, dominant, dominating, effective, effectual, effuse, epidemic, eventuating, everyday, exhaustless, extravagant, exuberant, familiar, fat, fertile, first, flush, flushed with success, focal, forceful, foremost, full, galore, general, generous, going on, great, habitual, happening, headmost, hegemonic, household, in ascendancy, in hand, in plenty, in quantity, in the ascendant, in the wind, incidental, inexhaustible, influential, lavish, leading, liberal, luxuriant, magisterial, main, many, master, maximal, much, normal, normative, numerous, occasional, occurring, on, on foot, on the throne, ongoing, opulent, ordinary, overcoming, overflowing, overruling, pandemic, paramount, passing, plenitudinous, plenteous, plentiful, plenty, popular, potent, powerful, predominant, predominating, preeminent, prepollent, preponderant, prepotent, prescriptive, prevalent, primal, primary, prime, principal, prodigal, productive, profuse, profusive, rampant, ranking, regnant, regular, regulation, reigning, replete, resultant, rich, rife, riotous, routine, ruling, running, running over, sovereign, standard, star, stellar, stereotyped, stock, successful, superabundant, supereminent, swaying, taking place, teeming, telling, topflight, triumphal, triumphant, under way, universal, usual, vanquishing, vernacular, victorious, wealthy, well-found, well-furnished, well-provided, well-stocked, wholesale, widespread, winning, wonted
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