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

Federal law holds that a mid-decade Census can be conducted, but not used for apportionment.

From Salon • Aug. 14, 2025

But as a matter of paramount importance to the compact, the Texas apportionment and the treaty water will be delivered,” Melloy wrote in his report.

From Seattle Times • Jul. 5, 2023

Arizona began starting to take its full apportionment of river water in the late 1990s, and Nevada in the early 2000s.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 5, 2023

In general, the apportionment of electoral districts this year appears to be the fairest in 40 years, as reported by the New York Times.

From Scientific American • Nov. 10, 2022

Where war has developed political organization the idea of inequality predominates, but the idea is one, not of natural, but of artificial apportionment.

From A Review of the Systems of Ethics Founded on the Theory of Evolution by Williams, C. M.