bias

/ˈbī-əs/

Middle French biais

noun

  1. an inclination of temperament or outlook; especially : a personal and sometimes unreasoned judgment : prejudice

  2. an instance of such prejudice

  3. bent, tendency

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

verb

  1. to give a settled and often prejudiced outlook to

  2. to apply a slight negative or positive voltage to (something, such as a transistor)

his background biases him against foreigners

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

adjective

  1. diagonal, slanting —used chiefly of fabrics and their cut