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
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
If a country sets hunting quotas to manage wolf populations, for example, individual farmers would be allowed to cull wolves in their area.
—
Olivia Ferrari, Smithsonian Magazine, 24 Apr. 2025
As a long-term project, working to create tradeable property rights in U.S. fisheries quotas through the empowerment of U.S. fishing communities and the reduction of federal regulatory micromanagement.
—Alden Abbott, Forbes.com, 23 Apr. 2025
Forty years later, the Jewish Congressman Emanuel Celler of Brooklyn finally abolished national-origin quotas by passing the Hart-Celler Act, which allowed approximately 600,000 Holocaust survivors to settle in the United States.
—Mark Treyger, New York Daily News, 19 Apr. 2025
Japan maintains relatively lower tariffs overall, but protects sectors like agriculture and leather goods through non-tariff barriers and quotas identified in the USTR's 2024 National Trade Estimate report.
—Thomas G. Moukawsher, MSNBC Newsweek, 14 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for quota
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Olivia Ferrari, Smithsonian Magazine, 24 Apr. 2025
As a long-term project, working to create tradeable property rights in U.S. fisheries quotas through the empowerment of U.S. fishing communities and the reduction of federal regulatory micromanagement.
—Alden Abbott, Forbes.com, 23 Apr. 2025
Forty years later, the Jewish Congressman Emanuel Celler of Brooklyn finally abolished national-origin quotas by passing the Hart-Celler Act, which allowed approximately 600,000 Holocaust survivors to settle in the United States.
—Mark Treyger, New York Daily News, 19 Apr. 2025
Japan maintains relatively lower tariffs overall, but protects sectors like agriculture and leather goods through non-tariff barriers and quotas identified in the USTR's 2024 National Trade Estimate report.
—Thomas G. Moukawsher, MSNBC Newsweek, 14 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for quota
Cite this Entry
“Quota.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/quota. Accessed 4 May. 2025.
Copy CitationKids 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
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