Popular — Meaning, Definition & Synonyms

Popular (adjective) — Senses, Synonyms & Antonyms

1. enjoying widespread favor or approval

   "an actor who was popular in the 1970s"

   similar: big, crowd-pleasing, du jour, faddish, faddy, fashionable, favorite, happening, hot, in, large, modish, pop, popularized, red-hot, vogue, voguish
   related: semipopular, preferred, selected, desirable, liked, wanted, celebrated, famed, famous, noted, notorious, prominent, renowned, well-known, fabled, fabulous, legendary, leading, notable, outstanding, remarkable, important, significant
   opposite: out, unfashionable, unpopular
   near: washed-up, despised, detested, disliked, hated, rejected, insignificant, unimportant, indistinguished, unexceptional, anonymous, nameless, obscure, unknown, inconspicuous

2. accepted, used, or practiced by most people

   "the popular custom of exchanging greeting cards during the holiday season"

   similar: conventional, current, customary, going, prevailing, prevalent, standard, stock, usual
   related: average, common, everyday, normal, ordinary, regular, routine, epidemic, ubiquitous, universal, widespread, accustomed, wonted, fashionable, in, modish, stylish
   opposite: nonstandard, unconventional, unpopular, unusual
   near: abnormal, exceptional, extraordinary, uncommon

3. held by or applicable to a majority of the people

   "popular opinion on that issue has changed dramatically over the years"

   similar: common, general, majority, overall, prevailing, public, received, ruling, vulgar
   related: unanimous, universal, pop, everyday, familiar, household, usual, well-known, contemporary, current, present, dominant, predominant, preponderant, characteristic, typical, pandemic, pervasive, prevalent, rife, widespread, communal, shared
   opposite: uncommon, unpopular
   near: rare, strange, unknown, unusual, distinctive, especial, idiosyncratic, peculiar, special, unique, individual, separate, singular, nonpublic, personal, private

4. of, relating to, or favoring political democracy

   "a truly popular revolution, not one that replaced one dictatorship with another"

   similar: democratic, republican, self-governing, self-ruling
   related: representative, libertarian, nontotalitarian
   opposite: nondemocratic, undemocratic
   near: autocratic, despotic, dictatorial, monarchal, monarchical, tyrannical

5. being within the financial means of most people

   "from their inception, DVDs were designed to be sold directly to consumers at popular prices"

   similar: accessible, affordable
   related: bargain-basement, budget, cheap, discount, inexpensive, low, low-end, rock-bottom, moderate, modest, reasonable
   near: costly, dear, expensive, high, high-end, upscale

6. costing little

   "we also have the popular models, for those who prefer not to invest too much in a new TV"

   similar: affordable, bargain-basement, budget, cheap, cheapie, cheapo, chintzy, cut-price (chiefly British), cut-rate, dime-store, dirt cheap, el cheapo, inexpensive, low, low-end, reasonable
   related: cheapish, moderate, discount, discounted, fire-sale, lowered, reduced, wholesale, valueless, worthless, supercheap, ultracheap
   opposite: costly, dear, deluxe, expensive, high, high-ticket, precious, premium, pricey, spendy (chiefly Northwest), valuable
   near: increased, inflated, exorbitant, extravagant, overpriced, prohibitive, prohibitory, steep, stiff, superexpensive, ultraexpensive, unreasonable, invaluable, priceless, luxurious