plurality

Etymology

plural + -ity, from Middle English pluralite, from Old French pluralité (“multitude, state of being plural”), from Latin plūrālitās.

noun

1. (uncountable) The state of being plural.
2. (ecclesiastical) The holding of multiple benefices.
   It was the complaint and lamentation of Prelats, upon every least breath of a motion to remove pluralities, and distribute more equally Church revennu's, that then all learning would be for ever dasht and discourag'd. 1644, John Milton, Areopagitica
3. (countable) A state of being numerous.
4. (countable) A number or part of a whole which is greater than any other number or part, but not necessarily a majority.
5. (countable) A number of votes for a single candidate or position which is greater than the number of votes gained by any other single candidate or position voted for, but which is less than a majority of valid votes cast.
   To repeal the tax (Question I), a 50 per cent majority vote is required. To keep the tax in its 1976 form (Question III), only a plurality of votes is required. 1977 September 8, "Crime against clarity", editorial, Bangor Daily News, page 14 http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=818zAAAAIBAJ&sjid=TiMIAAAAIBAJ&pg=1343,2352985
6. (countable) A margin by which a number exceeds another number, especially of votes.
   Truman's total vote was 24,104,836. Dewey received 21,969,500;[…]. Truman won by a plurality of 2,135,336, but it was the first time since 1916 that a winner has failed to capture a majority of all votes cast. December 10 1948, “President Race Ignored by 683,382 Voters”, in The Deseret News, page A-2
7. (countable) A group of many entities: a large number.
   A plurality of ideas were put forth at the meeting, most of which were rejected out of hand.
8. (countable) A group composed of more than one entity.
   The array is organized into a plurality of vertical (column) blocks. 1989, United States Patent 5065364, abstract
9. (of spouses) Polygamy.
10. (psychology) The condition of a single body/person displaying multiple distinct personas.
    In this paper I argue that hearing voices experiences and plurality are part of a broad, rich, and complex spectrum of human experience, […] 2016, Lori F. Clarke, “Embracing Polyphony: Voices, Improvisation, and the Hearing Voices Network”, in Intersectionalities: A Global Journal of Social Work Analysis, Research, Polity, and Practice, volume 5, number 2, page 1
    Clinical psychology tends to lean towards early childhood trauma as an explanation for the development of plurality, but many members of the plurality community report experiencing a multiplicity of selves before, or even completely in the absence of, trauma. 2020, Tynan Drake, "Intersectional Representation: LGBTQ+ and neurodiverse voices in transmedia fiction", paper submitted to Ball State University, page 5
    People often find it easiest to recognise plurality in themselves when they reflect on how they behave in different relationships or situations. 2020, Meg-John Barker, “Plural selves, queer, and comics”, in Journal of Graphic Novels and Comics, volume 11, number 4