portal

1 of 2

noun

por·​tal ˈpȯr-tᵊl 

1

: door, entrance

especially : a grand or imposing one

2

: the whole architectural composition surrounding and including the doorways and porches of a church

3

: the approach or entrance to a bridge or tunnel

4

: a communicating part or area of an organism

specifically : the point at which something (such as a pathogen) enters the body

5

: a website serving as a guide or point of entry to the World Wide Web and usually including a search engine or a collection of links to other sites arranged especially by topic

portal

2 of 2

adjective

1

: of or relating to the transverse fissure on the underside of the liver where most of the vessels enter

2

: of, relating to, or being a portal vein or a portal system

portal circulation

Synonyms

Noun

• door
• gate
• hatch

Examples of portal in a Sentence

Noun

a Web portal for baseball fans

the main portal to the estate is an elaborate wrought iron gate on the side facing the road

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

But the typical path has diminished in the age of the transfer portal. —Thuc Nhi Nguyen, Los Angeles Times, 20 Nov. 2023

There’s also this: Had Johnson come, the Aztecs likely would not have pursued a guard in the transfer portal the following spring. —Mark Zeigler, San Diego Union-Tribune, 19 Nov. 2023

Households can track their applications through the portal or by calling the response line at 1-800-283-4465. —Eden Villalovas, Washington Examiner, 14 Nov. 2023

But the Dark Elves plot to capture her and use the Aether to destroy the Nine Realms during the Convergence, an alignment of the realms when the portals linking them randomly appear. —Jacqueline Weiss, Peoplemag, 10 Nov. 2023

This feature can be enabled by customers in the early access section of the Okta admin portal. —Dan Goodin, Ars Technica, 3 Nov. 2023

Backstage will become the predominant framework for self-service developer portals. —Forrester, Forbes, 13 Nov. 2023

Despite hand-picking three transfers from the transfer portal, the Trojans never quite gelled up front. —Ryan Kartje, Los Angeles Times, 12 Nov. 2023

Assuming his commitment is confirmed, that leaves the Aztecs with at least one and likely two or even three spots for transfer portal. —Mark Zeigler, San Diego Union-Tribune, 10 Nov. 2023

See More

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Medieval Latin portale city gate, porch, from neuter of portalis of a gate, from Latin porta gate — more at port

Adjective

New Latin porta transverse fissure of the liver, from Latin, gate

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adjective

1754, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Phrases Containing portal

• portal system
• portal vein
• portal-to-portal

• portal system
• portal vein
• portal-to-portal

Kids Definition

portal

noun

por·​tal

ˈpōrt-ᵊl,

ˈpȯrt-

1

: a large or imposing door or entrance

2

: a website serving as a guide or point of entry to the Internet

Etymology

Noun

Middle English portal "door, the structure around a door," from early French portal (same meaning), derived from Latin portalis (adjective) "of a gate," from porta "gate, passage" — related to port entry 2

Medical Definition

portal

1 of 2 noun

por·​tal ˈpȯrt-ᵊl 

: a communicating part or area of an organism: as

a

: portal vein

b

: the point at which something enters the body

portals of infection

portal

2 of 2 adjective

1

: of or relating to the porta hepatis

2

: of, relating to, or being a portal vein or a portal system

portal blood

portal circulation

Biographical Definition

Portal

biographical name

Por·​tal ˈpȯr-tᵊl 

Charles Frederick Algernon 1893–1971 1st Viscount Portal of Hungerford British air marshal