fraction
noun · verb
Simple meaning
A small part or item forming a piece of a whole.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
frakshuhnSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ˈfɹækʃən
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
A small part or item forming a piece of a whole
A part of a whole, especially a comparatively small part.
A small amount.
arithmetic
The quotient of two rational numbers
arithmetic
A ratio of two numbers (numerator and denominator), usually written one above the other and separated by a horizontal bar called the vinculum or, alternatively, in sequence on the same line and separated by a solidus (diagonal bar).
verb
transitive
To divide or break into fractions.
transitive
To fractionate.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- B1 · Intermediate (estimated)
- Frequency
- Common
- Typical Use
- General English
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: A small part or item forming a piece of a whole
Used this way, fraction is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It stays understated rather than dramatic. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Mild
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- Matter-of-fact
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
More ways to use fraction
- “Only a small fraction of the group voted in favor of the proposal.”noun
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Word family
Words built from the same root.
A process that uses heat to separate a substance into its components.
Constituting or comprising a part or fraction of a possible whole or entirety.
Compound terms
Established multiword terms.
A fraction whose numerator is larger than the denominator.
A fraction with a numerator smaller than the denominator.
The quotient of two integers.
The quotient of two integers.
A fraction with fractions in the numerator or denominator.
A fraction with fractions in the numerator or denominator.
Related words
Connected by subject or meaning, not by word formation.
A monetary unit that is valued at a fraction (usually one hundredth) of the basic monetary unit.
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Words can change meaning depending on context.
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.