proclivity

English

Etymology

From Latin prōclīvitās, from prōclīvis (“prone to”).

Pronunciation

• (weak vowel distinction) IPA^(key): /pɹoʊˈklɪvɪti/
• (weak vowel merger) IPA^(key): /pɹoʊˈklɪvəti/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɪvɪti

Noun

proclivity (plural proclivities)

1. A predisposition or natural inclination, propensity, or a predilection; especially, a strong disposition or bent.

   Synonyms: penchant, propensity; see also Thesaurus:predilection

   The child has a proclivity for exaggeration.

   • 1922 February, James Joyce, “[16]”, in Ulysses, Paris: Shakespeare and Company, […], →OCLC:

     This therefore was the reason why the still comparatively young though dissolute man who now addressed Stephen was spoken of by some with facetious proclivities as Lord John Corley.

   • 1995, Andreu Mas-Colell, Michael D. Whinston, and Jerry R. Green, Microeconomic Theory, Oxford University Press, page 10:

     The idea is that the choice of $x$ when facing the alternatives $\{x,y\}$ reveals a proclivity for choosing $x$ over $y$ that we should expect to see reflected in the individual's behavior when faced with the alternatives $\{x,y,z\}$.

   • 2016 March 22, Emma Green, quoting Pastor Brown, “Where Is the Church in the Black Lives Matter Movement?”, in The Atlantic‎^[1]:

     The sermon that morning was ostensibly about healthy sexual relationships, but scathing critiques of capitalism and corporations also got significant airtime. (“I have leftist proclivities,” Brown explained.)

Translations

A predisposition or natural inclination, propensity, or a predilection

• Armenian: հակում (hy) (hakum), հակվածություն (hy) (hakvacutʻyun)
• Bulgarian: склонност (bg) f (sklonnost), тенденция (bg) f (tendencija)
• Chinese:

  Cantonese: 傾向／倾向 (king¹ hoeng³), 癖性 (pik¹ sing³)

  Mandarin: 怪癖 (zh) (guài pǐ)

• Dutch: aanleg (nl) m, neiging (nl) f
• Finnish: taipumus (fi)
• French: propension (fr) f, penchant (fr) m, tendance (fr) f, inclination (fr) f
• German: Hang (de) m, Vorliebe (de) f, Schwäche (de) f, Neigung (de) f
• Hungarian: hajlam (hu), hajlandóság (hu), hajlamosság (hu)
• Italian: tendenza (it) f
• Norwegian: tendens (no) m
• Polish: skłonność (pl) f
• Russian: скло́нность (ru) f (sklónnostʹ)
• Slovak: sklon m, predispozícia f, inklinácia f, tendencia f, záľuba f, zaľúbenie n, slabosť f
• Spanish: propensión (es) f, tendencia (es) f, inclinación (es) f, afición (es) f, predilección (es) f, gusto (es) m
• Swedish: böjelse (sv), benägenhet (sv)
• Turkish: yatkınlık (tr), eğilim (tr), temayül (tr) (obsolete)
• Ukrainian: схильність f (sxylʹnistʹ), нахил m (naxyl)