fraction

[frak-shuh n]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR fraction ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

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.

verb (used with or without object)

to divide or break into fractions, sections, factions, etc.: Dissension threatens to fraction the powerful union.

Origin of fraction

1350–1400; Middle English fraccioun < Late Latin frāctiōn- (stem of frāctiō) a breaking (in pieces), equivalent to Latin frāct(us) (past participle of frangere to break) + -iōn- -ion

Related formssub·frac·tion, noun

Synonyms for fraction

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR fraction ON THESAURUS.COM

3, 6. See part.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for fraction

portion, chunk, half, ratio, division, cut, end, fragment, section, share, slice, piece, bite, subdivision, part, partial, bit, segment, quotient

Examples from the Web for fraction

Contemporary Examples of fraction

It 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
One can only hope that their life together is even a fraction as fabulous as their wedding.
An Affair to Remember for George and Amal
Barbie Latza Nadeau
September 29, 2014
He maintains that Israel, which made these a prime target, only managed to destroy a fraction of them during the war.
Did Israel Execute Jihadists in Gaza?
Jesse Rosenfeld
September 7, 2014
The decibel levels fell a fraction, but we were still in the heart of a crowd that believed in Brazil.
Germany Humiliates World Cup Host Brazil 7-1 in Semifinal Slaughter
Tunku Varadarajan
July 8, 2014
He was, he said, amazed that “a fraction of a gram of sugar had rendered [him] unconscious.”
The Week in Death: Alexander Shulgrin, Who Synthesized the Drug Ecstasy
The Telegraph
June 7, 2014

Historical Examples of fraction

And her heart for the fraction of a second seemed to stand still too.
The Secret Agent
Joseph Conrad
For a fraction of a second I had one glimpse of the animal through the brush.
The Long Labrador Trail
Dillon Wallace
The banded colors were there for a minute fraction of a second.
Astounding Stories of Super-Science, November, 1930
Various
Is there not a certain glow of triumph in taming such a fraction?
A Tangled Tale
Lewis Carroll
For what we have received from our ancestors is only a fraction of what we are, or may become.
The Republic
Plato

British Dictionary definitions for fraction

fraction

noun

maths

a ratio of two expressions or numbers other than zero
any rational number that is not an integer

any part or subdivisiona 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

verb

(tr) to divide

Word Origin for fraction

C14: from Late Latin fractiō a breaking into pieces, from Latin fractus broken, from frangere to break

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for fraction

late 14c., originally in the mathematical sense, from Anglo-French fraccioun (Old French fraccion, 12c., "breaking") and directly from Late Latin fractionem (nominative fractio) "a breaking," especially into pieces, noun of action from past participle stem of Latin frangere "to break," from PIE root *bhreg- "to break" (cf. Sanskrit (giri)-bhraj "breaking-forth (out of the mountains);" Gothic brikan, Old English brecan "to break;" Lithuanian brasketi "crash, crack;" Old Irish braigim "break" wind). Meaning "a breaking or dividing" is from early 15c.; sense of "broken off piece, fragment," is from c.1600.

fraction in Medicine

fraction

[frăk′shən]

n.

An expression that indicates the quotient of two quantities.

A chemical component separated by fractionation.

A disconnected piece; a fragment.

An aliquot portion or any portion.

fraction in Science

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.

fraction in Culture

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.