1
: a proportional part or share
especially
: the share or proportion assigned to each in a division or to each member of a body
2
: the number or amount constituting a proportional share
3
: a fixed number or percentage of minority group members or women needed to meet the requirements of affirmative action
Examples of quota in a Sentence
The agency imposes strict fishing quotas.
The company has imposed quotas on hiring.
He lost his driver's license because he exceeded the quota of traffic violations.
The department set new sales quotas in January.
Recent Examples on the Web
From that, between $600 and $850 is deducted for the quota, along with additional payments for travel debt and communal living expenses, Kim said.
—
Efrat Lachter, FOXNews.com, 29 Mar. 2026
The last time the country saw immigration at the current scale was in the early 1900s, when Congress responded by imposing quotas.
—Maureen Groppe, USA Today, 28 Mar. 2026
Immigrant rights advocates have criticized the practice as inhumane and say ICE has cruelly targeted people following the rules by turning up to their court dates to meet quotas.
—Molly Crane-Newman, New York Daily News, 26 Mar. 2026
The central bank originally imposed the limitations due to governance and control issues at Wells, including employees opening millions of unauthorized accounts to meet work-performance quotas.
—Liz Napolitano, CNBC, 26 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for quota
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
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Efrat Lachter, FOXNews.com, 29 Mar. 2026
The last time the country saw immigration at the current scale was in the early 1900s, when Congress responded by imposing quotas.
—Maureen Groppe, USA Today, 28 Mar. 2026
Immigrant rights advocates have criticized the practice as inhumane and say ICE has cruelly targeted people following the rules by turning up to their court dates to meet quotas.
—Molly Crane-Newman, New York Daily News, 26 Mar. 2026
The central bank originally imposed the limitations due to governance and control issues at Wells, including employees opening millions of unauthorized accounts to meet work-performance quotas.
—Liz Napolitano, CNBC, 26 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for quota
Cite this Entry
“Quota.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/quota. Accessed 31 Mar. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
quota
noun
quo·ta
ˈkwōt-ə 
1
: a share or part assigned to each member of a group
2
: the number or amount making up a quota
Legal Definition
quota
noun
quo·ta
ˈkwō-tə
1
: a proportional part or share assigned to each in a body
2
: a specific amount that serves as a minimum or maximum
a law against traffic ticket quotas
Etymology
Medieval Latin, from Latin quota pars how great a part
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