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ration

noun · verb

Simple meaning

A portion of some limited resource.

Pronunciation

Say it like this:

rashuhn

Say the bold part a little louder.

US device voice
IPA pronunciation (US)

ˈɹæʃən

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.

Word Review

Definition

Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.

noun

  1. A portion of some limited resource, especially food, allocated to a person or group.

verb

  1. transitive

    To portion out (especially during a shortage of supply); to limit access to.

  2. transitive

    To restrict (an activity etc.)

  3. transitive

    To supply with a ration; to limit (someone) to a specific allowance of something.

Word at a Glance

Difficulty
C1 · Advanced
Frequency
Uncommon
Typical Use
Primarily written

Word Aura™

How this word commonly comes across.

Aura for this meaning

This meaning: A portion of some limited resource, especially food, allocated to a person or group.

Used this way, ration is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.

Emotional tone
Neutral
Formality
Neutral
Intensity
Not strongly marked
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 ration

  • “The rations should be nutritionally balanced.”noun
  • “Bread was rationed during the siege of the city.”verb

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Common Patterns and Combinations

How this word naturally appears with others.

ration cardration bookfood rationbread rationgrain rationbalanced rationmeat rationbasal ration

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Word Family

Related forms, grouped by how they connect.

Inflected forms

Grammatical variations of the same word.

  • rationingnounInflected form

    The act of rationing.

Word family

Words built from the same root.

  • rationaladjectiveDerived adjective

    Consistent with or based on or using reason.

  • rationallyadverbDerived adverb

    In a rational manner.

Compound terms

Established multiword terms.

  • ration cardnounCompound term

    A card certifying the bearer's right to purchase rationed goods.

  • ration outverbCompound term

    Distribute in rations, as in the army.

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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.