ratio

American  

[ray-shoh, -shee-oh] / ˈreɪ ʃoʊ, -ʃiˌoʊ /

noun

• ratios
  plural

1. the relation between two similar magnitudes with respect to the number of times the first contains the second.

   the ratio of 5 to 2, written 5:2 or 5/2.

2. proportional relation; rate.

   the ratio between acceptances and rejections.

3. Finance. the relative value of gold and silver in a bimetallic currency system.

4. Sometimes the ratio (on Twitter) the proportion of replies to a tweet compared to the combined number of retweets and likes, where a high ratio usually indicates a barrage of negative replies: LOL, then I added the reply, “Don't mind me, I'm just here for the ratio.”

   How is the Twitter ratio any different from other kinds of outraged cybermobs?

   LOL, then I added the reply, “Don't mind me, I'm just here for the ratio.”

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verb (used with object)

ratioed, ratio'd, ratioing

1. (on Twitter) to flood (a tweet or its author) with negative replies such that commenters as a group take control of the momentum and message away from the original poster.

   Political pundits trying to write provocative and edgy tweets are going to get ratioed sooner or later.

ratio British  

/ ˈreɪʃɪˌəʊ /

noun

1. a measure of the relative size of two classes expressible as a proportion

   the ratio of boys to girls is 2 to 1

2. maths a quotient of two numbers or quantities See also proportion

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ratio Scientific  

/ rā′shō,rā′shē-ō′ /

1. A relationship between two quantities, normally expressed as the quotient of one divided by the other. For example, if a box contains six red marbles and four blue marbles, the ratio of red marbles to blue marbles is 6 to 4, also written 6:4. A ratio can also be expressed as a decimal or percentage.

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ratio Cultural  

1. An expression of the relative size of two numbers by showing one divided by the other.

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Usage

What else does ratio mean? On the social media platform Twitter, a ratio, or getting ratioed, is when replies to a tweet vastly outnumber likes or retweets. This means people are objecting to the tweet and considering its content bad.

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• ratios
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of ratio

First recorded in 1630–40; from Latin ratiō “reckoning, account, calculation,” equivalent to rat-, past participle of rērī “to believe, think, imagine” + -iō, noun suffix from verb stems; see -tion

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Explanation

A ratio is the relationship in quantity or degree between two things: “The ratio of men to women on the construction site was ten to one.” This means there were ten men present and one woman. Use the word ratio when you want to make a comparison between two things. A ratio basically expresses a proportion. Often used in mathematics, the word ratio has many real world uses as well. This word is useful for everything from making salad dressing (an oil-to-vinegar ratio of three to one) to selecting a school for a child (consider the student-to-teacher ratio when making your decision).

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

ratio ratios ratioed ratioing

Taken together, a Treasury official estimates the US deficit-to-GDP ratio is around 6.2 percent, up from 5.8 percent last year.

From Barron's ● Oct. 16, 2026

Flo scored 34% of his 38 Premier League goals as a substitute - the eighth-highest ratio for those with 20 top-flight goals or more, while he is also joint-eighth overall for goals from a substitute.

From BBC ● Oct. 16, 2026

This fund launched in May 2000 with a 0.20% expense ratio.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 16, 2026

Their observations revealed that the proportion of magnesium to silicon on WASP-189b closely matches the ratio found in its parent star.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 14, 2026

The simple measure of sanity in housing prices, Zelman argued, was the ratio of median home price to income.

From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis

Only Aguero and Hernandez, of players to have scored at least 10 goals as a sub, have better goals-per-game ratios than him.

From BBC ● Oct. 16, 2026

In addition to the price changes, the table includes forward price-to-earnings ratios based on Thursday’s closing prices and consensus earnings-per-share estimates among analysts polled by FactSet.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 16, 2026

"Countries will now have to increase primary balances much more than they did in the recent past in order just to stabilise debt ratios," said Dabla-Norris.

From Barron's ● Oct. 14, 2026

In particular, the ratios of these elements in a disk are expected to resemble those measured in its central star.

From Science Daily ● Oct. 14, 2026

Because equal temperament is now so widely accepted as standard tuning, musicians do not usually even speak of intervals in terms of ratios.

From "Understanding Basic Music Theory" by Catherine Schmidt-Jones and Russel Jones

But, outside of the occasional ratioed tweet, her position was undeniable.

From Slate ● Nov. 19, 2025

They also see in Ellis a persona who can laugh off getting ratioed amid a watch-your-step social media culture.

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 7, 2021

“I just figured because a lot of them were heavily ratioed, and had over 1,000 replies, that too many replies means it shuts down,” Graziano told Salon.

From Salon ● Sep. 19, 2019

Cillizza’s tweet was ratioed, meaning the number of replies significantly outweighs the retweets and likes.

From Fox News ● May 6, 2019

Unfortunately for Schultz, people have been interested primarily in roasting him — and as HuffPo’s Ashley Feinberg noted, he may be the first Twitter user to be ratioed in every single one of his tweets.

From The Verge ● Jan. 30, 2019

Candy preference ratioing gets fierce during Spooky Season.

From Salon ● Oct. 29, 2022

Never has so much ratioing left the internet all at once.

From Washington Post ● Nov. 22, 2017

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Related Words

• proportion
• quota
• rate
• scale

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