Prevalent In: Standard Pattern
Prevalent In: Standard Pattern records the directly documented construction and keeps guidance bounded to the evidenced pattern rather than inventing a broader prohibition.
Use “prevalent in” for something common in a place, group, field, or context; “prevalent among” is also documented for groups of people or things.
Key details
Choose the right form
| Meaning / situation | Form / construction | Decision |
|---|---|---|
| common within a place, field, context, or category | prevalent in + context | Use “in” for the containing context. |
| common among members of a group | prevalent among + group | Also documented. |
| prevalent used without an expressed complement | prevalent | Possible when context already supplies the domain. |
Quick tests
Meaning / construction test
Are you naming the place, field, or context within which something is common?
If yes: Use “prevalent in.”
If no: For a group of people or things, “prevalent among” may fit; omit the complement if the context already supplies it.
Examples
The practice is prevalent in the industry.
“In” introduces the field or context where it is common.
The condition is more prevalent among older adults.
“Among” introduces members of a group.
That belief was once widely prevalent.
A complement is not required when the relevant domain is supplied by context.
Further guidance
Construction
Use “prevalent in” for something common in a place, group, field, or context; “prevalent among” is also documented for groups of people or things.
Style Boundary
Treat “in” as one directly documented complement, not the only possible one; Oxford also records “among” in appropriate group contexts.
Sources and evidence
Sources are shown with the role they play in this guide. Historical or style-sensitive claims are kept within the evidence boundary described above.
- prevalent adjective — Oxford Learner’s Dictionaries (opens in a new tab)Oxford University Press · Oxford Learner’s Dictionaries evidence for prevalent in and prevalent among as documented complements.