propensity

plural propensities

1. countableuncountableAn inclination, disposition, tendency, preference, or attraction.

   He has a propensity for lengthy discussions of certain favorite topics.

   5 more examples

   I must own they do dearly delight in a judgment; and sorry am I that I cannot gratify this laudable propensity by specifying some peculiar evil incurred by Mr. Delawarr's ambition, or Lady Etheringhame's vanity.

   1831, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], “The Last Chapter”, in Romance and Reality. […], volume III, London: Henry Colburn and Richard Bentley, […], →OCLC, page 326

   To the psychologist the religious propensities of man must be at least as interesting as any other of the facts pertaining to his mental constitution. It would seem, therefore, that, as a psychologist, the natural thing for me would be to invite you to a descriptive survey of those religious propensities.

   1902, William James, “Lecture I”, in The Varieties of Religious Experience: A Study in Human Nature […] , New York, N.Y.; London: Longmans, Green, and Co. […], →OCLC

   Here their peculiar propensities manifest themselves in making shibboleths of abstractions, in rationalizing and carrying to extremes certain ambitions which spring from the normal intercourse of men.

   1949, F. A. Hayek, “The Intellectuals and Socialism”, in University of Chicago Law Review, volume 16, number 3, Chicago: University of Chicago, →DOI, page 424

   He had a tremendous propensity for getting lost when driving.

   1988, Douglas Adams, The Long Dark Tea-Time of the Soul, William Heinemann Ltd, page 29

   Bats host many high-profile viruses that can infect humans, including severe acute respiratory syndrome and Ebola. A recent study explored the ecological variables that may contribute to bats’ propensity to harbor such zoonotic diseases by comparing them with another order of common reservoir hosts: rodents.

   2013 May-June, Katie L. Burke, “In the News”, in American Scientist, volume 101, number 3, page 193

   Synonyms: proclivity, predisposition, predilection, propension, affinity, bag, bent, love