allocation

American  

[al-uh-key-shuhn] / ˌæl əˈkeɪ ʃən /

noun

• allocations
  plural

1. the act of allocating; apportionment.

2. the state of being allocated.

3. the share or portion allocated.

4. Accounting. a system of dividing expenses and incomes among the various branches, departments, etc., of a business.

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allocation British  

/ ˌæləˈkeɪʃən /

noun

1. the act of allocating or the state of being allocated

2. a part that is allocated; share

3. accounting a system of dividing overhead expenses between the various departments of a business

4. social welfare (in a Social Services Department) the process of assigning referrals to individual workers, thus changing their status to cases

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• deallocation
  noun
• reallocation
  noun
• suballocation
  noun
• allocative
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• allocations
  plural

Etymology

Origin of allocation

First recorded in 1525–35; from Medieval Latin allocātiōn- (stem of allocātiō ), equivalent to allocāt(us) ( see allocate) + -iōn- -ion

Explanation

If it is your job to decide how much money goes to three charities, you are in charge of the allocation of your donation. The money each charity gets is their allocation. You'll often hear this word used when talking about things like government funding. People often debate the allocation of federal funds. Should tax dollars be used for the military, or for domestic needs like education and healthcare? These decisions are made by Congress and the President, who work together to create a budget to allocate funds appropriately.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

allocation allocations

Overton was the pick, returning his most economical figures when bowling his full allocation of four in a T20 international.

From BBC ● Sep. 19, 2026

Tata Trusts hold controlling economic interest and veto rights over Tata Sons board appointments and capital allocation decisions above a certain threshold.

From BBC ● Sep. 18, 2026

The California attorney general in February opened a civil rights investigation into potential disparities in the fire response, looking particularly at delays in evacuation alerts and resource allocation between west and east Altadena.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 15, 2026

The program’s first $6.4 million allocation targets a planned 200-unit complex in Austin, Texas.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 14, 2026

However, World Bank members, who came from many countries to meet in Moscow, were divided about the allocation.

From "Mountains Beyond Mountains" by Tracy Kidder and Michael French

Treasurers are also determining whether their investment allocations remain appropriate, he said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 17, 2026

It said allocations to inflation-linked bonds, commodities and trend following may help to improve portfolio resilience.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 17, 2026

But the fears aren’t being matched — yet — by fund managers’ asset allocations.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 15, 2026

About 8,000 visiting fans, a figure that was much larger than previous away allocations, had been allowed into Ibrox back in March to witness Celtic's penalty shootout win.

From BBC ● Sep. 12, 2026

Shift schedules, fund allocations, project juggling, out-and-out looting of other projects . . . he'd never pulled so many stunts in his life.

From "The Martian" by Andy Weir

Related Words

• allotment
• appropriation
• quota
• share