more often than not
- 1Usually; in more than half of all cases; more likely to happen than not to happen.
More often than not, the meetings ran past their scheduled end time.
Weather forecasts for the region turn out to be accurate more often than not.
Similarusually, generally, mostly, typically, normally
Note
A small puzzle hides in the final word: more often than not what? The phrase is often understood as a shortened "more often than not so," though some may hear "not" as "naught," like a gauge whose zero marks the midpoint. It moves freely in a sentence. It can lead with a comma, close a clause, or sit inside the verb, as when changes "are more often than not frowned upon."
Use it in a sentence
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Origin
The origin is obscure. It is semantically equivalent to, and often understood as, a shortening of "more often than not so." It may also sometimes be understood as "more often than zero," especially with scales or gauges where the zero mark is the midpoint.