apportionment

American  

[uh-pawr-shuhn-muhnt, uh-pohr-] / əˈpɔr ʃən mənt, əˈpoʊr- /

noun

1. the act of apportioning.

2. the determination of the number of members of the U.S. House of Representatives according to the proportion of the population of each state to the total population of the U.S.

3. the apportioning of members of any other legislative body.

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apportionment British  

/ əˈpɔːʃənmənt /

noun

1. the act of apportioning

2. government the proportional distribution of the seats in a legislative body, esp the House of Representatives, on the basis of population

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apportionment Cultural  

1. The allocation of seats in a legislature or of taxes according to a plan. In the United States Congress, for example, the apportionment of seats in the House of Representatives is based on the relative population of each state, whereas the apportionment in the Senate is based on equal representation for every state. (See also gerrymander.)

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Other Word Forms

• nonapportionment
  noun
• proapportionment
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of apportionment

First recorded in 1620–30; apportion + -ment

Explanation

Apportionment is deciding how to divide things up and distribute them. While the apportionment of the candy from a piñata can be chaotic, milk apportionment in a school cafeteria is much more orderly. The apportionment of tax dollars may be contentious in your town if some people object to the amount of spending that goes to the yearly fireworks display. This controversy may result in the apportionment of blame on a few specific city council members. Apportionment is also used for the number of congressional representatives each state gets, based on population: "Maine might lose a seat in the House of Representatives during the next apportionment."

Example Sentences

And, since the country’s founding, the U.S. has conducted a Census once a decade for the purposes of apportionment.

From Salon • Aug. 14, 2025

The successful challenge by Phoenix won’t change how many congressional seats Arizona got during the apportionment process, or the more detailed numbers used for redrawing political boundaries.

From Seattle Times • May 30, 2023

Under those alternatives, federal officials said the cuts would reach more than 2 million acre-feet — a major reduction from the three states’ total apportionment of 7.5 million acre-feet.

From Los Angeles Times • May 22, 2023

These panels often resort to computer programs to find the fairest possible apportionment.

From Scientific American • Nov. 10, 2022

In Virginia, an election for members of Congress, under the old system and apportionment, takes place on the fourth Thursday in the present month.

From The International Monthly, Volume 4, No. 3, October, 1851 by Various