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

• allotment
• allowance
• cut
• end
• part
• piece
• portion
• proportion
• share
• slice
• take

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

Men and women were forced to labor in the tropical sun for 12 hours or more a day to fulfill ever-rising production quotas. —Matthew Brown, Washington Post, 24 Mar. 2024

But there is an exception in state law that allows the quota to be exceeded for off-premise retailers when there is no other license holder within 2 miles. —Paul Egan, Detroit Free Press, 19 Mar. 2024

Surveys show widespread public support for increasing medical school admissions, the quota for which was last raised in 2006. —Jin Yu Young, New York Times, 4 Mar. 2024

The government wants to increase South Korea’s medical school enrollment quota by 2,000 starting next year, from the current 3,058, to better deal with the country’s rapidly aging population. —Hyung-Jin Kim, Quartz, 4 Mar. 2024

The goal is to create meaningful connections, not hit a quota. —Ginny Hogan, Forbes, 14 Feb. 2024

Is a worker completing a certain number of tasks per day, hitting a phone call quota, or putting in long hours at the office? —Trey Williams, Fortune, 8 Feb. 2024

Though French law bars any explicit quota system, the public broadcaster has made strides in recent years, seeing its percentage of female directors double from 18 to 35%. —Ben Croll, Variety, 21 Mar. 2024

The act, which was repealed in 1943 and replaced with a quota system allowing around 105 visas per year, and other laws institutionalized anti-Asian discrimination. —Amanda Holpuch, New York Times, 14 Mar. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Medieval Latin, from Latin quota pars how great a part

First Known Use

1618, in the meaning defined at sense 1

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