fraction
Mathematics.
a number usually expressed in the form a/b.
a ratio of algebraic quantities similarly expressed.
Chemistry. (in a volatile mixture) a component whose range of boiling point temperatures allows it to be separated from other components by fractionation.
a part as distinct from the whole of anything; portion or section: The meeting started with a fraction of us present.
a very small part or segment of anything; minute portion: Only a fraction of the work was completed on time.
a very small amount; a little bit: It was only a fraction away from completion.
a piece broken off; fragment or bit.
the act of breaking.
Ecclesiastical. (in a Eucharistic service) the breaking of the Host.
to divide or break into fractions, sections, factions, etc.: Dissension threatens to fraction the powerful union.
Origin of fraction
1synonym study For fraction
Other words from fraction
- sub·frac·tion, noun
Words Nearby fraction
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use fraction in a sentence
As a result, Phobos appears large enough to blot out a large fraction of the sun as seen from the surface of Mars.
These Images Expose the Dark Side of the Solar System - Issue 89: The Dark Side | Corey S. Powell | August 26, 2020 | NautilusShe and her colleagues used a model that compared fantasy players’ win fractions during the first half of a series of competitions against their win fractions over the second half.
The Economics of Sports Gambling (Ep. 388 Rebroadcast) | Stephen J. Dubner | August 20, 2020 | FreakonomicsChina’s gross savings rate, as a fraction of its gross domestic product, dropped from a peak of 52 percent in 2008 to 46 percent in 2018, while India’s fell from 37 percent in 2007 to 30 percent in 2018.
Could the Recession Revive the Savings Gene in China and India? | Pallabi Munsi | August 16, 2020 | OzyThere’s a precise way in which a matching Set triple can be thought of as an arithmetic progression, and just as with lists of whole numbers, you can ask what fraction of the cards you must lay down to be sure of finding at least one triple.
Landmark Math Proof Clears Hurdle in Top Erdős Conjecture | Erica Klarreich | August 3, 2020 | Quanta MagazineSince 77 is an odd number, we cannot reduce this fraction to have a lower power of 2 in the denominator, so 5 or 6 generations will not work.
How to Design (or at Least Model) Mixed Dog Breeds | Pradeep Mutalik | July 31, 2020 | Quanta Magazine
The judges who handle arraignments at criminal court in all five boroughs have a small fraction of their usual caseloads.
Twitter mentions: 20,000, but still a tiny fraction of what was to come.
How the World Turned on Bill Cosby: A Day-by-Day Account | Scott Porch | December 1, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTNo, on the contrary, only a fraction of this country, a part which I would call the best of Italy, is against the Mafia.
Days of Mafia Mayhem Are Wracking Italy Once Again | Barbie Latza Nadeau | November 22, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTIt has a third of the budget and a fraction of the maritime vessels.
Britain’s Let-Em-All-Die Policy | Nico Hines, Barbie Latza Nadeau | November 1, 2014 | THE DAILY BEASTWhile it provides only a small fraction of the power used—about 1.5 percent—it does represent an important investment and symbol.
The beauty, the mystery,—this fierce sunshine or something—stir——' She hesitated for a fraction of a second.
The Wave | Algernon BlackwoodWe can thus disregard the first 16 and consider only the last two figures which constitute the fraction of a century.
Assimilative Memory | Marcus Dwight Larrowe (AKA Prof. A. Loisette)"I've got one-fraction of an inch play, at any rate," said the garboard-strake, triumphantly.
Kipling Stories and Poems Every Child Should Know, Book II | Rudyard KiplingJoseph had mentally spent his tiny fraction of the money a dozen times or more.
Before turning up the eleventh card he paused for the fraction of a second.
The Joyous Adventures of Aristide Pujol | William J. Locke
British Dictionary definitions for fraction
/ (ˈfrækʃən) /
maths
a ratio of two expressions or numbers other than zero
any rational number that is not an integer
any part or subdivision: a substantial fraction of the nation
a small piece; fragment
chem a component of a mixture separated by a fractional process, such as fractional distillation
Christianity the formal breaking of the bread in Communion
the act of breaking
(tr) to divide
Origin of fraction
1Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Scientific definitions for fraction
[ frăk′shən ]
A number that compares part of an object or a set with the whole, especially the quotient of two whole numbers written in the form ab. The fraction 12, which means 1 divided by 2, can represent such things as 10 pencils out of a box of 20, or 50 cents out of a dollar. See also decimal fraction improper fraction proper fraction.
A chemical component separated by fractionation.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Cultural definitions for fraction
A mathematical expression representing the division of one whole number by another. Usually written as two numbers separated by a horizontal or diagonal line, fractions are also used to indicate a part of a whole number or a ratio between two numbers. Fractions may have a value of less than one, as with 1/2, or equal to one, as with 2/2, or more than one, as with 3/2. The top number of a fraction is the numerator and the bottom number is the denominator.
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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