bias

1 of 4

noun

bi·​as ˈbī-əs How to pronounce bias (audio)
1
a
: an inclination of temperament or outlook
especially : a personal and sometimes unreasoned judgment : prejudice
b
: an instance of such prejudice
c
d(1)
: deviation of the expected value of a statistical estimate from the quantity it estimates
(2)
: systematic error introduced into sampling or testing by selecting or encouraging one outcome or answer over others
2
: a line diagonal to the grain of a fabric
especially : a line at a 45 degree angle to the selvage often utilized in the cutting of garments for smoother fit
3
a
: a peculiarity in the shape of a bowl that causes it to swerve when rolled on the green in lawn bowling
b
: the tendency of a bowl to swerve
also : the impulse causing this tendency
c
: the swerve of the bowl
4
a
: a voltage applied to a device (such as a transistor control electrode) to establish a reference level for operation
b
: a high-frequency voltage combined with an audio signal to reduce distortion in tape recording

bias

2 of 4

verb

biased or biassed; biasing or biassing

transitive verb

1
: to give a settled and often prejudiced outlook to
his background biases him against foreigners
2
: to apply a slight negative or positive voltage to (something, such as a transistor)

bias

3 of 4

adjective

: diagonal, slanting
used chiefly of fabrics and their cut
biasness noun

bias

4 of 4

adverb

1
: diagonally
cut cloth bias
2
obsolete : awry
Phrases
on the bias
1
: diagonally to the grain of a fabric
cut the cloth on the bias
sleeves cut on the bias
2
: at an angle : diagonally to the fibers of something
cut the meat on the bias
carrots cut on the bias

Did you know?

Bias vs. Biased

In recent years, we have seen more evidence of the adjectival bias in constructions like “a bias news program” instead of the more usual “a biased news program.” The reason is likely because of aural confusion: the -ed of biased may be filtered out by hearers, which means that bias and biased can sound similar in the context of normal speech. They are not interchangeable, however. The adjective that means “exhibited or characterized by an unreasoned judgment” is biased (“a biased news story”). There is an adjective bias, but it means “diagonal” and is used only of fabrics (“a bias cut across the fabric”).

Choose the Right Synonym for bias

Noun

predilection, prepossession, prejudice, bias mean an attitude of mind that predisposes one to favor something.

predilection implies a strong liking deriving from one's temperament or experience.

a predilection for travel

prepossession suggests a fixed conception likely to preclude objective judgment of anything counter to it.

a prepossession against technology

prejudice usually implies an unfavorable prepossession and connotes a feeling rooted in suspicion, fear, or intolerance.

a mindless prejudice against the unfamiliar

bias implies an unreasoned and unfair distortion of judgment in favor of or against a person or thing.

a strong bias toward the plaintiff

Verb

incline, bias, dispose, predispose mean to influence one to have or take an attitude toward something.

incline implies a tendency to favor one of two or more actions or conclusions.

I incline to agree

bias suggests a settled and predictable leaning in one direction and connotes unfair prejudice.

the experience biased him against foreigners

dispose suggests an affecting of one's mood or temper so as to incline one toward something.

her nature disposes her to trust others

predispose implies the operation of a disposing influence well in advance of the opportunity to manifest itself.

does fictional violence predispose them to accept real violence?

Examples of bias in a Sentence

Noun … members of the opinion media will cherry-pick moments from the debate that support their own ideological biases. Michelle Cottle, New Republic, 16 Oct. 2000
Blatant racial and gender discrimination is just about over, creating a sociological space in which to worry about subtler forms of bias. Gregg Easterbrook, New Republic, 20 Dec. 1999
Like the printing press before it, the computer has a powerful bias toward amplifying personal autonomy and individual problem-solving. Katha Pollitt, Nation, 9 Oct. 1995
He showed a bias toward a few workers in particular. Do they have a bias against women? The company was accused of racial bias. The decision was made without bias. She showed no bias toward older clients. a student with a strong bias towards the arts Verb Unfortunately, his convictions are not clearly and logically developed; they mostly lurk in the background biasing his reporting. He does not always give the reader a fair chance to follow the arguments of the actors—even those with whom he ardently agrees. Leonard Silk, New York Times Book Review, 24 Feb. 1980
I don't want to bias you against the movie, but I thought the book was much better. The circumstances could bias the results of the survey. Adverb made of fabric cut bias
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
The rows were spaced approximately 50m to 100m apart and along the rows the collar spacings were 70m to 150m. There were four near vertical drill holes and three drill holes with azimuth perpendicular to the pattern that were made to test that there is no drill pattern bias in the results. Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 7 Mar. 2024 From the start of the Israel-Gaza war, anti-Islamic bias and hate proliferated. Eli Cahan, Rolling Stone, 7 Mar. 2024 Lawmakers in at least seven states are taking big legislative swings to regulate bias in artificial intelligence, filling a void left by Congress’ inaction. Jesse Bedayn, Fortune, 5 Mar. 2024 Israel has blocked such an investigation by the U.N.'s human rights office over what the country's leaders allege is anti-Israel bias. Michele Kelemen, NPR, 4 Mar. 2024 Google's public apology after its Gemini artificial intelligence (AI) produced historically inaccurate images and refused to show pictures of White people has led to questions about potential racial bias in other big tech chatbots. Fox News Staff, Fox News, 2 Mar. 2024 Inadvertent bias in sharing certain labs’ or researchers’ work may entrench a lack of geographic, gender, or institutional diversity, the paper adds. IEEE Spectrum, 2 Mar. 2024 That means exploring your own internal biases, challenging your assumptions and cultivating a growth mindset. Susan Callender, Forbes, 1 Mar. 2024 Is that because of unconscious bias or just truly missing Janine and their hijinks? Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 28 Feb. 2024
Verb
Overall, the study found 51% of the chatbots’ responses were inaccurate, 40% were harmful, 38% were incomplete, and 13% were biased. Britney Nguyen, Quartz, 28 Feb. 2024 Self-assessment is also valuable but is often biased by personal perceptions and blind spots. Robin Elledge, Forbes, 20 Feb. 2024 Noel said Hidalgo's case was somewhat unique, in that Callan's remarks to USA TODAY were central to their argument that the judge was biased in sentencing him in 2000. USA TODAY, 13 Feb. 2024 Amazon once used an AI recruitment tool that turned out to be biased against female applicants. Bruce Weinstein, Forbes, 21 Feb. 2024 Modern rowers did share one key factor with ancient women — a similar load intensity biased toward the upper limb. Emilie Le Beau Lucchesi, Discover Magazine, 9 Feb. 2024 And Nikki Haley, the former governor of South Carolina and the former president’s chief competitor for the Republican nomination, opted for the primary after deciding the caucuses were biased, a criticism shared by some Nevada political observers, who laid blame on Mr. McDonald. Michael Gold, New York Times, 8 Feb. 2024 All scientists are human beings and, despite our best efforts, can be biased in our thoughts and decisions. Luke Caldwell, Scientific American, 16 Jan. 2024 Republican lawmakers have for years accused social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter of being biased against conservative views. David McCabe, New York Times, 12 Oct. 2023
Adjective
Since bias may take on different forms in different fields, a one-time, one-size-fits-all anti-bias training may not have a lasting effect. Yasemin Copur-Gencturk, Ian Thacker, and Joseph Cimpian, Special To Usa Today, USA TODAY, 2 May 2023 The state legislature’s education committee raised the issue in a bill this session, prosing Connecticut further develop recruitment and retention strategies for educators of color, as well as require district staff in charge of hiring teachers to undergo implicit bias and anti-bias training. Amanda Blanco, courant.com, 4 May 2021 The Kennys told city officials during settlement negotiations that any agreement would need to include a plan for systemic use-of-force reforms and anti-bias training that would help officers better deal with minorities and people with mental disabilities. Kimberly Kindy, Anchorage Daily News, 15 Sep. 2022 The city also agreed to provide anti-bias training, maintain an early intervention program for officers who might require assistance or training and ensure that all officers' personnel files are kept throughout their law enforcement career, The Colorado Springs Gazette reported. Christine Pelisek, PEOPLE.com, 9 Feb. 2022 Anti-bias training is included in our onboarding process and reiterated during site-wide meetings. Democrat-Gazette Staff From Wire Reports, Arkansas Online, 12 Nov. 2022 As a congresswoman, Ms. Bass took a leading role in 2020 after George Floyd’s death on legislation that aimed to prevent excessive use of force by police and promoted new officer anti-bias training. Jeffery C. Mays, New York Times, 21 Feb. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'bias.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun, Verb, Adjective, and Adverb

Middle French biais

First Known Use

Noun

1530, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Verb

1581, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adjective

1551, in the meaning defined above

Adverb

circa 1578, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of bias was in 1530

Dictionary Entries Near bias

Cite this Entry

“Bias.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bias. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

bias

1 of 2 noun
bi·​as ˈbī-əs How to pronounce bias (audio)
1
: a line diagonal to the grain of a fabric
2
: an attitude that always favors one way of feeling or acting over any other : prejudice
3
: a voltage applied to a device (as a transistor control electrode) to establish a reference level for operation

bias

2 of 2 verb
biased or biassed; biasing or biassing
: to give a prejudiced outlook to

Legal Definition

bias

noun
bi·​as ˈbī-əs How to pronounce bias (audio)
: a personal and often unreasoned judgment for or against one side in a dispute : prejudice
a judge disqualified because of bias

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