Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun Superiority or decisive advantage; domination.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun The state of being in the ascendant; governing or controlling influence; domination.
  • noun Synonyms Influence, Authority, Ascendancy, etc. (see authority), mastery, dominion, superiority, advantage, upper hand.
  • noun Same as ancestry.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun Same as ascendency.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun The process or period of one's ascent
  • noun Supremacy; superiority; dominant control; the quality of being in the ascendant

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun the state that exists when one person or group has power over another

Etymologies

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From ascendant +‎ -cy

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Examples

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  • He was not afraid of the natives; they would not stir till Mr. Kurtz gave the word. His ascendancy was extraordinary.

    -Heart of Darkness (Conrad)

    March 19, 2011