as in allotting
to give as a share or portion
the region has had to ration water during times of drought
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Recent Examples of rationing
The entire district was rationing food, and people did not have a lot to eat.
—
Ian Frazier, New Yorker, 19 Jan. 2026
No one in 1946 could imagine British rationing would continue another 10 years.
—Stephen Schaefer, Boston Herald, 11 Jan. 2026
There’s a story about someone who’s been rationing their insulin and the downsides of that.
—Senior Television, Los Angeles Times, 9 Jan. 2026
Porter County will begin rationing road salt after taking delivery of nearly half the salt for the season with three months of winter remaining.
—Shelley Jones, Chicago Tribune, 8 Jan. 2026
Shortages of food, once guaranteed by a government rationing system, are threatening to push millions of Cubans closer to malnutrition.
—Patrick Oppmann, CNN Money, 5 Jan. 2026
Iran introduced fuel rationing back in 2007, but that has yet to ease demand for the ultra-cheap gasoline.
—Nasser Karimi, Arkansas Online, 14 Dec. 2025
On top of everything else, there are rolling blackouts in the summer (some say caused by government bitcoin mining), and a severe drought in the fall (combined with water resource mismanagement over decades) has made water rationing a real possibility.
—Big Think, 25 Nov. 2025
Ruto announced this month that Kenya was undertaking loadshedding — rationing power in certain areas during peak demand hours — as the country’s capacity of 2,311 MW was being outpaced by record demand for electricity.
—Martin K.n Siele, semafor.com, 21 Nov. 2025
Ian Frazier, New Yorker, 19 Jan. 2026
No one in 1946 could imagine British rationing would continue another 10 years.
—Stephen Schaefer, Boston Herald, 11 Jan. 2026
There’s a story about someone who’s been rationing their insulin and the downsides of that.
—Senior Television, Los Angeles Times, 9 Jan. 2026
Porter County will begin rationing road salt after taking delivery of nearly half the salt for the season with three months of winter remaining.
—Shelley Jones, Chicago Tribune, 8 Jan. 2026
Shortages of food, once guaranteed by a government rationing system, are threatening to push millions of Cubans closer to malnutrition.
—Patrick Oppmann, CNN Money, 5 Jan. 2026
Iran introduced fuel rationing back in 2007, but that has yet to ease demand for the ultra-cheap gasoline.
—Nasser Karimi, Arkansas Online, 14 Dec. 2025
On top of everything else, there are rolling blackouts in the summer (some say caused by government bitcoin mining), and a severe drought in the fall (combined with water resource mismanagement over decades) has made water rationing a real possibility.
—Big Think, 25 Nov. 2025
Ruto announced this month that Kenya was undertaking loadshedding — rationing power in certain areas during peak demand hours — as the country’s capacity of 2,311 MW was being outpaced by record demand for electricity.
—Martin K.n Siele, semafor.com, 21 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rationing
Verb
-
For years, Marley has been allotting a portion of his concert ticket sales for charity issues.—
David Browne,
Rolling Stone,
20 Nov. 2025
-
In 1959, Prince Edward County, Virginia, closed its public schools for five years, diverting tax monies to build a K-12 private academy for 1,400 white students and allotting their families tuition grants.—
Equal Justice Initiative,
USA Today,
6 Nov. 2025
Verb
-
Voters in 2014 approved Proposition 1, allocating $1 billion for a water storage project in the Sacramento Valley that remains under construction.—
Nadia Lathan,
Los Angeles Times,
23 Jan. 2026
-
Trump’s 2025 tax and budget bill reflected this reprioritization, allocating US$170 billion over four years to immigration enforcement, compared to approximately $30 billion allocated in 2024.—
Kelsey Norman,
The Conversation,
23 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Talk about learning from mistakes, without assigning blame or dramatizing setbacks.—
Cheryl Robinson,
Forbes.com,
28 Jan. 2026
-
What date will Southwest start assigning seats?—
Michael Salerno,
AZCentral.com,
27 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
The San Diego Air Pollution Control District launched the program in 2024, distributing over 10,000 purifiers to local residents.—
Walker Armstrong,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
29 Jan. 2026
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Markiplier, who boasts 73 million followers across digital platforms, including 38 million subscribers on Youtube, is also self-distributing the film.—
Rebecca Rubin,
Variety,
28 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Rationing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rationing. Accessed 1 Feb. 2026.
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