8 Wintry Words to Defrost Your Vocabulary


[bahy-uh s] /ˈbaɪ əs/
a particular tendency, trend, inclination, feeling, or opinion, especially one that is preconceived or unreasoned: illegal bias against older job applicants; the magazine’s bias toward art rather than photography;
our strong bias in favor of the idea.
unreasonably hostile feelings or opinions about a social group; prejudice:
accusations of racial bias.
an oblique or diagonal line of direction, especially across a woven fabric.
Statistics. a systematic as opposed to a random distortion of a statistic as a result of sampling procedure.
Lawn Bowling.
  1. a slight bulge or greater weight on one side of the ball or bowl.
  2. the curved course made by such a ball when rolled.
Electronics. the application of a steady voltage or current to an active device, as a diode or transistor, to produce a desired mode of operation.
a high-frequency alternating current applied to the recording head of a tape recorder during recording in order to reduce distortion.
cut, set, folded, etc., diagonally:
This material requires a bias cut.
in a diagonal manner; obliquely; slantingly:
to cut material bias.
verb (used with object), biased, biasing or (especially British) biassed, biassing.
to cause to hold or exhibit a particular bias; to influence, especially unfairly: a tearful plea designed to bias the jury;
a survey biased toward highly educated people.
Electronics. to apply a steady voltage or current to (the input of an active device).
on the bias,
  1. in the diagonal direction of the cloth.
  2. out of line; slanting.
1520-30; < Middle French biais oblique < Old Provençal, probably < Vulgar Latin *(e)bigassius < Greek epikársios oblique, equivalent to epi- epi- + -karsios oblique
Related forms
subbias, noun
superbias, noun
1. predisposition, preconception, predilection, partiality, proclivity; bent, leaning. Bias, prejudice mean a strong inclination of the mind or a preconceived opinion about something or someone. A bias may be favorable or unfavorable: bias in favor of or against an idea. Prejudice implies a preformed judgment even more unreasoning than bias, and usually implies an unfavorable opinion: prejudice against people of another religion. 10. predispose, bend, incline, dispose.
1. impartiality. Unabridged
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British Dictionary definitions for on the bias


mental tendency or inclination, esp an irrational preference or prejudice
a diagonal line or cut across the weave of a fabric
(electronics) the voltage applied to an electronic device or system to establish suitable working conditions
  1. a bulge or weight inside one side of a bowl
  2. the curved course of such a bowl on the green
  2. if T is an estimator of the parameter θ, the expected value of (T–θ)
an inaudible high-frequency signal used to improve the quality of a tape recording
slanting obliquely; diagonal: a bias fold
obliquely; diagonally
verb (transitive) -ases, -asing, -ased, -asses, -assing, -assed
(usually passive) to cause to have a bias; prejudice; influence
Derived Forms
biased, biassed, adjective
Word Origin
C16: from Old French biais, from Old Provençal, perhaps ultimately from Greek epikarsios oblique
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
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Word Origin and History for on the bias



1520s, from French biais "slant, slope, oblique," also figuratively, "expedient, means" (13c., originally in Old French a past participle adjective, "sideways, askance, against the grain"), of unknown origin, probably from Old Provençal biais, with cognates in Old Catalan and Sardinian; possibly from Vulgar Latin *(e)bigassius, from Greek epikarsios "athwart, crosswise, at an angle," from epi- "upon" + karsios "oblique," from PIE *krs-yo-, from root *(s)ker- "to cut." It became a noun in Old French. "[A] technical term in the game of bowls, whence come all the later uses of the word" [OED]. Transferred sense of "predisposition, prejudice" is from 1570s in English.



1620s, literal and figurative, from bias (n.). Related: Biased; biasing.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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