proportional

play

noun pro·por·tion·al \ prə-ˈpȯr-shnəl , -shə-nᵊl \

Definition of proportional

:a number or quantity in a proportion

First Known Use of proportional

14th century

Other Mathematics and Statistics Terms

abscissa, denominator, divisor, equilateral, exponent, hypotenuse, logarithm, oblique, radii, rhomb

proportional

adjective

Definition of proportional

1 a :corresponding in size, degree, or intensity

b :having the same or a constant ratio

corresponding sides of similar triangles are proportional

2 :regulated or determined in size or degree with reference to proportions

a proportional system of immigration quotas

—

proportionality

play \-ˌpȯr-shə-ˈna-lə-tē\ noun

—

proportionally

play \-ˈpȯr-shnə-lē, -shə-nᵊl-ē\ adverb

See proportional defined for English-language learners

See proportional defined for kids

Examples of proportional in a Sentence

The features of the face in the drawing are proportional.
the Web site's popularity increased exponentially, resulting in a proportional increase in advertising revenue

Recent Examples of proportional from the Web

Swift is at least in good, beautiful company; just look at the nightmare Tom Brady’s perfectly proportional face presented to another courtroom sketch artist:

— hilary weaver, Vanities, "Why the Courtroom Sketches of Taylor Swift Were So Off the Mark," 15 Aug. 2017
Single-seat, winner-takes-all districts could be replaced by multi-seat districts with some form of proportional representation.

— bernard grofman, Washington Post, "The U.S. could be free of gerrymandering. Here’s how other countries do redistricting.," 7 Aug. 2017
Since power is proportional to the square of the current, i.e., P = I2R, its consumption is a million times greater.

— bill huang, Scientific American Blog Network, "Robots with Their Heads in the Clouds," 2 Aug. 2017
The state provides a per-pupil allotment, and school districts are required to pass along a proportional share of their county education money, based on the number of students in their zone who attend the charter school.

— ann doss helms, charlotteobserver, "Can a consultant under ethics investigation save Cornelius’ troubled charter school?," 2 Aug. 2017
Oftentimes women who get a reduction will also have an areola reduction so the areola is proportional to the new size of the breast.

— brooke shunatona, Cosmopolitan, "21 Things You Should Know Before Getting a Boob Job," 13 July 2017
The number of winners named in each state is proportional to the state’s percentage of the nation’s graduating high school seniors.

— elaine rooker jack, The Courier-Journal, "16 Kentuckiana students win National Merit Scholarship," 7 July 2017
However, like so many things about the Obama administration, the response to what the Russians did was measured and allegedly proportional.

— charles p. pierce, Esquire, "This, Right Here. This Is Where Obama Choked.," 23 June 2017
One-fifth of men will experience significant hair loss by age of 20(!), and that percentage grows proportional to age.

— adam hurly, GQ, "How to Know If You Will Go Bald," 22 June 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'proportional.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of proportional

15th century

proportional Synonyms

Synonyms

commensurable, commensurate, proportionate, in proportion

Antonyms

disproportionate

Related Words

balanced, symmetrical (or symmetric); correlative, reciprocal; contingent, dependent, relative; akin, comparable, similar

Near Antonyms

asymmetrical (or asymmetric), distorted, irregular, lopsided, nonsymmetrical, twisted, unsymmetrical; unbalanced

Other Mathematics and Statistics Terms

abscissa, denominator, divisor, equilateral, exponent, hypotenuse, logarithm, oblique, radii, rhomb

PROPORTIONAL Defined for English Language Learners

proportional

adjective

Definition of proportional for English Language Learners

: having a size, number, or amount that is directly related to or appropriate for something
: having parts that are the correct or appropriate size in relation to each other