quota

noun

quo·​ta ˈkwō-tə 

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

Synonyms

• portion
• share
• part
• percentage
• proportion
• allowance
• allotment

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

The agency has previously argued that minority-serving grants should go instead to programs that do not rely on racial quotas. —Gabe Whisnant, MSNBC Newsweek, 15 Sep. 2025

Despite having a free trade agreement with the US since 2012, South Korea has never received a dedicated visa quota, unlike several other FTA partners. —Nino Paoli, Fortune, 14 Sep. 2025

Chan, whose single-family office has a presence in both locations, cited challenges like longer KYC screenings and hiring quotas for the wealthy to run a family office in Singapore. —Lee Ying Shan, CNBC, 12 Sep. 2025

South Korea is playing catchup, and does not yet have such a visa quota. —Anthony Kuhn, NPR, 11 Sep. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Medieval Latin, from Latin quota pars how great a part

First Known Use

1618, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for quota

• chota
• cota
• biota
• iota
• lakota
• nonquota
• ricotta

Kids 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