proportion en · NOUN
Pronunciation
- /pɹəˈpo(ː)ɹʃən/ rhotic, without the horse–hoarse merger
- /pɹəˈpɔɹʃən/ (General-American)
- /pɹəˈpoəʃən/ non-rhotic, without the horse–hoarse merger
- /pɹəˈpɔːʃən/ (Received-Pronunciation)
- (US) audio
Etymology
From Middle English proporcion, from Old French proportion, from Latin prōportiō (“comparative relation, proportion, symmetry, analogy”), from pro (“for, before”) + portio (“share, part”); see portion. By surface analysis, pro- + portion.
Meanings
-
(countable) A quantity of something that is part of the whole amount or number.
“I don't mean all of your friends—only a small proportion—which, however, connects your circle with that deadly, idle, brainless bunch—the insolent chatterers at the opera, the gorged dowagers, the worn-out, passionless men, the enervated matrons of the summer capital,[…]!”
1907 August, Robert W[illiam] Chambers, chapter VI, in The Younger Set, New York, N.Y.: D. Appleton & Company, →OCLC:
- (uncountable) Harmonious relation of parts to each other or to the whole.
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(countable) Proper or equal share.
Let the women[…]do the same things in their proportions and capacities.
1651, Jer[emy] Taylor, The Rule and Exercises of Holy Living. […], 2nd edition, London: […] Francis Ashe […], →OCLC:
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(countable, uncountable) The relation of one part to another or to the whole with respect to magnitude, quantity, or degree.
the proportion of the parts of a building, or of the body
Formed in the best proportions of her sex.
1819 December 20 (indicated as 1820), Walter Scott, Ivanhoe; a Romance. […], volume (please specify |volume=I to III), Edinburgh: […] Archibald Constable and Co.; London: Hurst, Robinson, and Co. […], →OCLC:The image of Christ made in Pilate's time after his own proportion.
1563 March 30 (Gregorian calendar), John Foxe, Actes and Monuments of These Latter and Perillous Dayes, […], London: […] Iohn Day, […], →OCLC:
- (countable) A statement of equality between two ratios.
- (archaic, countable, uncountable) The "rule of three", in which three terms are given to find a fourth.
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(countable, in-plural) Size.
The humor of my proposition appealed more strongly to Miss Trevor than I had looked for, and from that time forward she became her old self again;[…]. Now she had come to look upon the matter in its true proportions, and her anticipation of a possible chance of teaching him a lesson was a pleasure to behold.
1897 December (indicated as 1898), Winston Churchill, chapter VIII, in The Celebrity: An Episode, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company; London: Macmillan & Co., Ltd., →OCLC:What other television show would feature a gorgeously designed sequence where a horrifically mutated Pierre and Marie Curie, their bodies swollen to Godzilla-like proportions from prolonged exposure to the radiation that would eventually kill them, destroy an Asian city with their bare hands like vengeance-crazed monster-Gods?
2012 May 20, Nathan Rabin, “TV: Review: THE SIMPSONS (CLASSIC): “Marge Gets A Job” (season 4, episode 7; originally aired 11/05/1992)”, in The Onion AV Club:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| proportions | Number=Plur | lexicographic | |
| purportion | alternative, misspelling | lexicographic |
Deriveds
disproportion · proportional · golden proportion · unproportion · proportionize · proportionate · of Koranic proportions · inverse proportion · superproportion · compound proportion · proportionless · reproportion · proportionment · proportioner · underproportion · blow out of proportions · harmonic proportion · proportionable · overproportion · reciprocal proportion · disproportionate · proportionally · out of all proportion · equiproportion · in proportion · misproportion · blow out of proportion · divine proportion · out of proportion
Translations (51)
eo proporcio (quantity that is part of the whole) · hu hányad (quantity that is part of the whole) · id proporsi ((mathematics) a statement of equality between two ratios) · es proporción (quantity that is part of the whole) · ms قدرن ((mathematics) a statement of equality between two ratios) · fr proportion (quantity that is part of the whole) · grc ἀναλογία (quantity that is part of the whole) · it proporzione (quantity that is part of the whole) · de Teil (quantity that is part of the whole) · tl hagway (quantity that is part of the whole) · ca proporció (quantity that is part of the whole) · pl proporcja (harmonious relation of parts to each other or to the whole) · hu aránypár ((mathematics) a statement of equality between two ratios) · vi tỉ lệ (quantity that is part of the whole) · gl proporción (quantity that is part of the whole) · mi hautanga (quantity that is part of the whole) · ota نسبت (the relation of one part to another or to the whole with respect to magnitude, quantity, or degree) · bg пропорция ((mathematics) a statement of equality between two ratios) · be прапо́рцыя (quantity that is part of the whole) · ga comhréir (quantity that is part of the whole) · la prōportiō (quantity that is part of the whole) · ja 割合 (quantity that is part of the whole) · ru пропо́рция (quantity that is part of the whole) · ko 비례 (quantity that is part of the whole) · bg съразмерност (harmonious relation of parts to each other or to the whole) · ia proportion (quantity that is part of the whole) · bg дял (quantity that is part of the whole) · pl proporcja (quantity that is part of the whole) · cmn 比例 (quantity that is part of the whole) · ml അനുപാതം (the relation of one part to another or to the whole with respect to magnitude, quantity, or degree) · pl proporcja (the relation of one part to another or to the whole with respect to magnitude, quantity, or degree) · fi osuus (quantity that is part of the whole) · uk пропо́рція (quantity that is part of the whole) · ml അനുപാതം (proper or equal share) · hu arány (harmonious relation of parts to each other or to the whole) · fi osa (quantity that is part of the whole) · de Proportion (quantity that is part of the whole) · el αναλογία (quantity that is part of the whole) · pl odsetek (quantity that is part of the whole) · pl proporcja ((mathematics) a statement of equality between two ratios) · fi verranto ((mathematics) a statement of equality between two ratios) · bg пропорционалност (the relation of one part to another or to the whole with respect to magnitude, quantity, or degree) · hu arány (the relation of one part to another or to the whole with respect to magnitude, quantity, or degree) · pt proporção (quantity that is part of the whole) · de Anteil (proper or equal share) · tr orantı (quantity that is part of the whole) · cs poměr (quantity that is part of the whole) · ast proporción (quantity that is part of the whole) · fi suhde (quantity that is part of the whole) · ja 比例 (quantity that is part of the whole) · bg дял (proper or equal share)