disproportionate

adjective

dis·​pro·​por·​tion·​ate ˌdis-prə-ˈpȯr-sh(ə-)nət 

: being out of proportion

a disproportionate share

disproportionately adverb

Examples of disproportionate in a Sentence

He believes that middle-class people bear a disproportionate share of the tax burden.

A disproportionate number of the students are poor.

Recent Examples on the Web

Women Borrowers Bear Disproportionate Loan Debt Burden Women hold a disproportionate share of student debt, making the financial impact of student loans especially severe. —Shahar Ziv, Forbes.com, 25 Apr. 2025

In March 2022, the NYPD launched its Neighborhood Safety Teams to focus on gun violence prevention in areas that account for a disproportionate number of citywide shootings. —Christina Shaw, FOXNews.com, 25 Apr. 2025

The volume’s premise is that institutional defects in the electoral system give extreme candidates and factions an undue voice, producing a disproportionate number of extremist winners. —Foreign Affairs, 22 Apr. 2025

Wealthier countries attract a disproportionate share of migrants, while migration between neighboring countries is far more common than between distant ones. —The Physics Arxiv Blog, Discover Magazine, 17 Apr. 2025

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Medieval Latin disprōportiōnātus, past participle of disprōportiōnāre "to make out of proportion," from Latin dis- dis- + Medieval Latin prōportiōnāre "to compose according to proportions" — more at proportion entry 2

First Known Use

1555, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for disproportionate

• extortionate
• proportionate

Kids Definition

disproportionate

adjective

dis·​pro·​por·​tion·​ate ˌdis-prə-ˈpōr-sh(ə-)nət 

-ˈpȯr-

: being out of proportion

disproportionately adverb