prevailing

prevailing

CEFR: C1-C2 /pre-vail-ing/ [p.r.ih0.v.ey1.l.ih0.ng]

The adjective "prevailing' means common or popular. The collocation "prevailing notion/idea/view = mainstream view" is often used. Here are example sentences

Example Sentences:
She disagrees with prevailing ideas/notions about raising children.
The prevailing view seems to be that they will find her guilty.
The prevailing notion was that consumers would overwhelmingly replace their laptops and desktops with the hand-held touch-screen devices.

The prevailing wind in an area is the type of wind that blows over that area most of the time. For example:

Example Sentences:
The prevailing wind in this region is from the east. [=the wind in this region usually comes from the east]