portion
Americannoun
-
a part of any whole, either separated from or integrated with it.
I read a portion of the manuscript.
- Antonyms:
- whole
-
an amount of food served for one person; serving; helping.
He took a large portion of spinach.
- Synonyms:
- ration
-
the part of a whole allotted to or belonging to a person or group; share.
-
the part of an estate that goes to an heir or a next of kin.
- Synonyms:
- inheritance
-
Literary. something that is allotted to a person by God or fate.
-
(especially formerly) the money, goods, or estate that a woman brings to her husband at marriage; dowry.
verb (used with object)
-
to divide into or distribute in portions or shares (often followed byout ).
-
to furnish with a portion, as with an inheritance or a dowry.
All of his children have been amply portioned.
- Synonyms:
- endow
-
to provide with a lot or fate.
She was portioned with sorrow throughout her life.
noun
-
a part of a whole; fraction
-
a part allotted or belonging to a person or group
-
an amount of food served to one person; helping
-
law
-
a share of property, esp one coming to a child from the estate of his parents
-
the property given by a woman to her husband at marriage; dowry
-
-
a person's lot or destiny
verb
-
to divide up; share out
-
to give a share to (a person); assign or allocate
-
law to give a dowry or portion to (a person); endow
Related Words
See part.
Other Word Forms
- portionable adjective
- portionless adjective
- reportion verb (used with object)
- unportionable adjective
- unportioned adjective
Etymology
Origin of portion
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English porcion, from Old French, from Latin portiōn- (stem of portiō ) “share, part,” akin to pars part
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Scoop out a portion of the soup and blend it smooth, or use an immersion blender to break down just part of the pot.
From Salon • Apr. 3, 2026
A significant portion of that month’s net job reductions came from striking health care workers, whose work stoppages meant their employers could not include those jobs in the BLS’ surveys.
From Slate • Apr. 3, 2026
“If any portion of the project fails, they are not going to be holding the bag.”
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 3, 2026
The Earth appears to us as upside down, with the western Sahara and Iberian peninsula visible to the left and the eastern portion of South America to the right.
From BBC • Apr. 3, 2026
“Which is not unreasonable,” Nathan said impatiently, “seeing how one portion has sometimes to be stretched to three!”
From "Nectar in a Sieve" by Kamala Markandaya
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
