influence
n. US //ˈɪnfɫuəns// UK //ˈɪnfluːəns// in·flu·ence
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1 a person or thing that causes change (n.) B1 Intermediatea person or thing that has an effect on others.
a person or thing with the capacity or power to affect others, often used to describe a role model or a significant factor.
ExampleMy older brother was a positive influence on me when I was growing up.
ExampleThe architect cited the brutalist movement as a primary influence on her early residential designs.
From Middle English influence, from Old French influence (“emanation from the stars affecting one's fate”), from Medieval Latin īnfluentia, from Latin īnfluēns (“flowing in”), present active participle of īnfluō (“flow into”), from in- (“in-”) + fluō (“flow”). Doublet of influenza.
- Nouninfluence
- Nouninfluencer