portionn.
/ˈpɔːʃn/, U.S. /ˈpɔrʃ(ə)n/ 1. An allocation, a share.
a. gen. The part of anything allotted or belonging to one person; a share; an appointed task, duty, or the like. Also figurative.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > possession > sharing > [noun] > a share
lotOE
metc1225
partc1300
portion?1316
share1539
coportion1596
quota1688
ration1850
chop1919
low1934
the mind > possession > giving > distributing or dealing out > an allotted share, portion, or part > [noun]
dealc825
lotOE
dolea1225
partc1300
portion?1316
sort1382
parcelc1400
skiftc1400
pane1440
partagec1450
shift1461
skair1511
allotment1528
snapshare1538
share1539
slice1548
fee1573
snap1575
moiety1597
snatch1601
allotterya1616
proportiona1616
symbol1627
dealth1637
quantum1649
cavelc1650
snip1655
sortition1671
snack1683
quota1688
contingency1723
snick1723
contingent1728
whack1785
divvy1872
end1903
bite1925
society > law > legal right > right of possession or ownership > right to succeed to title, position, or estate > succession > [noun] > descent by inheritance > that which is inherited > a share in an inheritance
portion?1316
purpartya1325
purpart1492
purparture1643
?1316 Short Metrical Chron. (Royal) 352 in J. Ritson Anc. Eng. Metrical Romanceës (1802) II. 284 The kyng of Esex..hade to ys portion [v.rr. porcian, porcion] Wylteschire, Barkschyre.
a1325 Statutes of Realm (2011) vii. 57 Ant of þulke þat holdez part of baronies, weþer so heo ben religious oþer seculers, he sal nime after þe porcion þat heo holdez in þe baronie.
c1384 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(2)) Luke xv. 12 Fadir, ȝyue to me the porcioun of substaunce, ethir catel, that byfallith to me.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Vesp.) 4746 (MED) He salde ilkman his porcion [a1400 Gött. porciun; a1400 Trin. Cambr. porcioun].
a1425 (?c1350) Ywain & Gawain (1964) 3585 (MED) To þe king al þai bisoght..Þat he sold evin þe landes dele And gif þe ȝonger damysele Þe half or els sum porciowne.
1535 Bible (Coverdale) 1 Esdras v. 8 Euery man sought his porcion agayne in Iewry.
1589 T. Nashe Anat. Absurditie Ep. Ded. sig. ¶iii As I haue no portion in any mans opinion, so am I the Prorex of my priuate thought.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Henry VI, Pt. 1 (1623) v. v. 81 I vnworthy am To woe so faire a Dame to be his wife, And haue no portion in the choice my selfe. View more context for this quotation
1622 H. Peacham Compl. Gentleman ix. 73 Euery man had his owne portion of ground lotted and laide out to him.
1696 E. Phillips New World of Words (new ed.) Portion, a Lot, or Share of any thing that is to be parcell'd out or divided.
1725 B. Franklin Diss. Liberty & Necessity ix. 66 A has no Reason to complain that his Portion of Pleasure was five Degrees less than that of B, for his Portion of Pain was five Degrees less likewise.
1772 ‘Junius’ Stat Nominis Umbra II. lxviii. 315 The study of the law requires but a moderate portion of abilities.
1847 L. H. Kerr tr. L. von Ranke Hist. Servia 25 He honourably performed his portion of the compact.
1892 R. W. Cochran-Patrick Mediæval Scotl. i. 6 Strangers in blood to the tribe often joined a sept, and received a portion from the chief, giving in return their sword-service and customary dues.
1957 R. K. Narayan Printer of Malgudi i. 13 The old man..stopped before a doorway in a dark passage and said: ‘This is going to be your portion. It is an independent house by itself.’
1996 R. Mistry Fine Balance (1997) i. 20 She would surely receive her portion of grief and sorrow in due course, there was no need to take on the burden prematurely.
b. A quantity or allowance of food allotted to, or enough for, one person or animal; a helping.Not always distinguishable from sense 4.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > food > amounts of food > [noun] > portion of food
portiona1398
refection?a1439
soleinc1440
ciza1665
disper1840
a1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus De Proprietatibus Rerum (BL Add.) f. 278 Gentile houndes..holdeþ hem apayede wiþ..bones and blood for here porcioun.
1440 J. Capgrave Life St. Norbert (1977) l. 2560 Whan þis wolf had thus his porcyoun He went streyt to wood.
1484 W. Caxton tr. Subtyl Historyes & Fables Esope ii She dyd brynge to hym [sc. a poor man] his porcion as she was custommed for to doo.
1525 Ld. Berners tr. J. Froissart Cronycles II. ccxxii. [ccxviii.] 691 To close you vp in a castell, and there to be holden vnder subiection, and to lyue by porcion.
1611 Bible (King James) Esther ix. 22 Daies of feasting and ioy, and of sending portions one to another. View more context for this quotation
1682 J. Bunyan Holy War 355 Eat the fat, and drink the sweet, and send portions to them for whom nought is prepared. View more context for this quotation
1746 M. Hughes Jrnl. Late Rebell. 46 A double portion of Oatmeal and Whisky.
1792 D. O'Connell Let. 14 Sept. (1972) I. 4 We get very small portions at dinner.
1853 C. Dickens Bleak House xxvii. 272 Mrs. Bagnet..sitting with every dish before her; allotting to every portion of pork its own portion of pot-liquor, greens, potatoes, and even mustard.
1885 Times 15 Sept. 13/2 For dinner they allowed..a piece of meat, game, or fowl, a small portion of vegetables, a light pudding or stewed fruit.
1938 Life 6 June 68/3 They..consumed generous portions of ice cream, cake, and nonalcoholic punch.
1992 W. Grady Visions of Jude iii. v. 149 He ordered a plate of spaghetti and meatballs, adult portion.
c. The part or share of an estate given or passing by law to an heir or other beneficiary, or to be distributed to an heir in the settlement of the estate. Also figurative. Now historical.
ΚΠ
c1450 Jacob's Well (1900) 21 In defraude of here wyves & chylderyn, to lettyn hem fro þe porcyoun þat longyth to hem.
a1500 (c1340) R. Rolle Psalter (Univ. Oxf. 64) (1884) xv. 5 He is porcioun and mede of myn heritage.
a1538 T. Starkey Dial. Pole & Lupset (1989) 76 Inheritarys to a grete portyon of intaylyd land.
1590 E. Spenser Faerie Queene ii. ii. sig. N8 Full little weenest thou, what sorrowes are Left thee for porcion of thy liuelyhed.
1642 T. Fuller Holy State v. xix. 437 On whom the earth as their common mother bestowed a grave for a childs portion.
1692 R. South 12 Serm. I. 441 Losers, and Male-contents, whose portion and inheritance is a freedom to speak.
1739 New Precedents Conveyancing 453 In Consideration..of the Portion and Estate of the said M. F. to which the said J. W. will by his said Marriage be entitled.
1792 T. Paine Rights of Man: Pt. Second v. 148 By cutting off..the younger children from their proper portion of inheritance, the public is loaded with the expense of maintaining them.
1818 W. Cruise Digest Laws Eng. Real Prop. (ed. 2) II. 21 Sir Joseph Jekyll decreed, that the plaintiffs were entitled to their original portions, as well as to the additional portions given by the will.
1855 T. B. Macaulay Hist. Eng. III. xii. 210 On what security..could any man invest his money or give a portion to his children, if he could not rely on positive laws and on the uninterrupted possession of many years?
1910 Encycl. Brit. I. 125/2 The act..did not extend..to any provision for raising portions for the children of the settlor.
1986 E. Schildkrout in B. Potash Widows Afr. Societies 143 Widows are entitled to one-quarter of their husband's estate, but if there are children or grandchildren the widows' portion is reduced to one-eighth.
1998 D. Pool What Jane Austen ate & Charles Dickens Knew (new ed.) 163 The bride's family would have their lawyers negotiate with the husband's lawyers to agree to guarantee her..money to support her after he died, and ‘portions’ of money for their children.
d. A dowry; = marriage portion n. at marriage n. Compounds 2. Now chiefly historical.
ΘΚΠ
society > society and the community > kinship or relationship > marriage or wedlock > wedding or nuptials > gifts and payments > [noun] > dowry
moryeveOE
marriagea1325
dowing1382
dowerc1386
dowrya1400
marriage money1454
marriage good1478
tocher1496
dote1509
jointurea1513
portion1513
endowry1523
tocher-good1538
dowagea1552
marriage dowrya1616
wedding-dowera1616
marriage portion1616
portion money1625
fortune1702
dot1822
1513 Will of Robert Fabyan in R. Fabyan New Chrons. Eng. & France (1811) Pref. p. vii Also I will that my chalice, wt my .ij. crewetts and pax of siluer,..whiche before daies I gave to my wif, remayn styll to her, in augmentyng of hir porcion.
1596 W. Warner Albions Eng. (rev. ed.) ix. xlvii. 223 Who loues not for the Person but the Portion loues no whit.
1647 N. Bacon Hist. Disc. Govt. 103 This custome..was..from the Latines, who used to give dower with the man, and receive portion with the woman.
1726 J. Swift Gulliver I. i. i. 3 I married Mrs. Mary Burton..with whom I received four Hundred Pounds for a Portion.
1782 J. H. St. J. de Crèvecoeur Lett. from Amer. Farmer vii. 176 Every man takes a wife as soon as he chuses, and that is generally very early. No portion is required, none is expected.
1813 J. Austen Pride & Prejudice I. xix. 252 Your portion is unhappily so small that it will in all likelihood undo the effects of your loveliness and amiable qualifications. View more context for this quotation
1861 M. Pattison in Westm. Rev. Apr. 406 Edward, on his side, is to give the moderate portion of 10,000 marks with his daughter.
1933 H. Allen Anthony Adverse I. i. ii. 25 To that end a very considerable dowry was her portion.
1995 J. Habakkuk Marriage, Debt, & Estates Syst. ii. 78 There was a notion of the portion appropriate to an earl's daughter.
2. A person's lot, destiny, or fate. Chiefly with possessive adjective. †to lay one's portion with: to cast in one's lot with (obsolete).
ΘΚΠ
the world > existence and causation > occurrence > future events > [noun] > destiny or fate
whatec1200
gracec1325
destiny1340
portionc1350
sortc1405
weird1508
dolec1520
foredoom1563
fate1667
destinate1675
fatality1699
kismet1849
ultimatum1861
foredestiny1872
ming1937
c1350 Psalter (BL Add. 17376) in K. D. Bülbring Earliest Compl. Eng. Prose Psalter (1891) xlix. 19 (MED) Þou..laid þy porcioun [L. portionem] wyþ spouse-breches.
c1400 (a1376) W. Langland Piers Plowman (Trin. Cambr. R.3.14) (1960) A. x. 117 (MED) Be paied wiþ þe porcioun [v.r. possessioun] pore oþer riche.
c1475 (?c1400) Apol. Lollard Doctr. (1842) 51 (MED) If ani presume aȝen þis, know he him to haue porcoun wiþ Giezi.
a1500 (c1340) R. Rolle Psalter (Univ. Oxf. 64) (1884) cxviii. 57 My porcyon, lord, i sayd forto kepe thi laghe.
1535 Bible (Coverdale) Job xx. 29 This is the porcion that ye wicked shal haue of God, and the heretage that he maye loke for of the Lorde.
1576 G. Gascoigne Steele Glas Ep. Ded. Shall I yelde to mysery as a just plague apointed for my portion?
1643 W. Prynne Soveraigne Power Parl. App. 217 What then will be our portion, if we be unzealous, negligent, perfidious to it?
1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost i. 72 Eternal Justice..here their Prison ordain'd In utter darkness, and their portion set. View more context for this quotation
1709 R. Steele Tatler No. 54. ⁋1 When Labour was pronounced to be the Portion of Man.
1766 O. Goldsmith Vicar of Wakefield II. ix. 146 Let it be your care now..to give me courage to drink of that bitterness which must shortly be my portion!
1818 M. W. Shelley Frankenstein II. ix. 150 If I have no ties and no affections, hatred and vice must be my portion.
1863 E. C. Gaskell Sylvia's Lovers III. xiii. 221 A deeper want, a more woeful wretchedness, would in all probability be his portion.
1913 A. F. Irvine My Lady of Chimney-corner 15 Sufferin' will be yer portion in this world.
1957 D. van der Meulen Wells of Ibn Sa'ud iii. 36 The age-long tragedy of Arabia was their portion now.
1998 Santa Fe New Mexican (Nexis) 11 Dec. p46 Burning love, mixed with misery and death, become their portion.
3.
a. A part of any whole; a section, a division; a proportion, a fraction.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > wholeness > incompleteness > part of whole > [noun]
deala800
doleOE
endOE
lotlOE
partyc1300
parta1325
specec1330
portiona1387
piecec1400
proportion1443
parcellingc1449
faction1577
piecemeal1603
proportional1856
a1387 J. Trevisa tr. R. Higden Polychron. (St. John's Cambr.) (1865) I. 99 (MED) Þe norþ est porcioun [L. portio] of Arabia hatte Saba.
a1425 (a1400) Prick of Conscience (Galba & Harl.) (1863) 8118 (MED) Saint Austyn telles..Þat a day here may be a porcyon Of ane hundreth yhere.
1548 N. Udall et al. tr. Erasmus Paraphr. Newe Test. I. Luke iii. f. 32 A porcion of the parties gooddes beyng seased as a forfaict.
1566 J. Knox Serm. sig. Aij I haue set forth nothing in exponing anye portion of scripture, except this onely rude and indigest Sermon.
1633 Sc. Acts Chas. I (1817) V. 103/1 That..portioun of the lordshipe of Dumbar boundit meithit and merchit as eftir-followes.
1669 S. Sturmy Mariners Mag. v. viii. 34 How to Measure a Segment or portion of a Globe or Sphere.
1715 tr. D. Gregory Elements Astron. I. iii. §17. 416 Such a portion of the Ecliptic, as the Sun describes in the mean while by its Annual motion towards the East.
1783 E. Burke 9th Rep. Select Comm. Justice in Bengal, Bahar & Orissa in Parl. Papers VI. 43 A certain Portion of the Revenues of Bengal has been for many Years set apart.
1831 T. B. Macaulay Hampden in Ess. (1887) 205 Almost every part of this virtuous and blameless life..is a precious and splendid portion of our national history.
1886 T. Frost Reminisc. Country Journalist 215 Without the vicious sensationalism which renders objectionable a large portion of the cheap periodical literature of the day.
1948 A. C. Kinsey et al. Sexual Behavior Human Male xxi. 610 A considerable portion of the population..has at least some homosexual experience between adolescence and old age.
1994 E. L. Doctorow Waterworks 194 Then he applied the trephine and removed a portion of the skull.
b. Judaism. The section of the Pentateuch or of the Prophets appointed to be read on a particular Sabbath or festival.
ΘΚΠ
society > faith > aspects of faith > Bible, Scripture > Testament > Old Testament > divisions of Old Testament > [noun] > Pentateuch > part of
portion1892
1673 Bp. G. Burnet Vindic. Church & State Scotl. iv. 302 There [sc. at the synagogue] did they likewise meet on their Sabbaths, and recited their Philacteries, or Liturgies, and heard a portion of the Law read: which was divided in so many Sections, that it might be yearly read over.
1845 Jewish Chron. 3 Jan. 69/2 1. Portion of the Law for the first day of Passover. 2. Portion for the seventh day. 3. Portion for the Pentecost [etc.].]
1892 I. Zangwill Children of Ghetto II. 87 Reb Shemuel was already poring over a Pentateuch in his Friday night duty of reading the portion twice in Hebrew and once in Chaldaic.
1932 L. Golding Magnolia St. i. ii. 17 She should have kept Sam in..to say the week's portion out of the Pentateuch, to do his soul good.
1981 C. Rayner Running Years lv. 500 A party come to hear a boy say his Barmitzvah portion.
1997 Times (Nexis) 11 Oct. Five men took it in turns to read the portion for the day from Genesis 22.
4. A specified or limited quantity or amount of a substance, commodity, quality, etc. Usually with of.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > quantity > [noun] > some, any, or indefinite amount > as related to amount of which it is part
portionc1390
parcel1483
quota pars1606
quotity1613
quota1618
quotient1621
quotum1627
the world > relative properties > wholeness > incompleteness > part of whole > [noun] > a or some part of something
somedeala900
somethingc1200
somewhat1297
portionc1390
sharea1450
sort1575
something1654
c1390 G. Chaucer Shipman's Tale 1246 Toward..Brugges for to fare To byen there a porcioun of ware.
1426 in J. Raine Vol. Eng. Misc. N. Counties Eng. (1890) 6 He boght of John Lyllyng a porcion of alom.
a1450 (?a1300) Richard Coer de Lyon (Caius) (1810) 5413 The Sarezynes..cryede, trewes!..To the false Kyng off Fraunse; And he hem grauntyd..For a porcioun off golde.
1526 W. Bonde Pylgrimage of Perfection i. sig. Diiiiv But grace eye, the lest porcion of grace,..is sufficient.
1573 Treat. Arte of Limming p. viii If you will mingle a litle portion of white with a good quantitie of redde, you may make thereof a Russet.
1634 J. Bate Myst. Nature & Art 28 A Weather~glasse is a structure of, at the least, two glasses..inclosing a quantity of water, and a portion of ayre proportionable.
1676 G. Towerson Explic. Decalogue 463 Our recreations should be meted by smaller portions.
1743 W. Emerson Doctr. Fluxions 2 The indefinitely small Portions of the Fluent which are generated in any indefinitely small Portions of Time are called Moments or Increments.
1784 European Mag. & London Rev. 6 113 A due portion of martialism elevates the soul in a remarkable degree.
1838 T. Thomson Chem. Org. Bodies 965 It would not be surprising if a portion of water, so far from being decomposed, were actually formed by the union of its constituents previously existing in the grain.
1886 Jrnl. Royal Meteor. Soc. 2 Small portions of thin vaporous clouds are seen.
1944 Electronic Engin. 17 101 A portion of hot glass..is made to drop into a mould.
1991 Decanter Aug. 23/3 The wine was made by the ‘saignée’ method, which involves bleeding a small portion of juice from each vat after just 12 hours skin contact.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > possession > giving > distributing or dealing out > [noun] > dividing and sharing out
partingc1330
departinga1340
divisionc1380
partition1429
departison1444
dividentc1450
skiftingc1450
partage1484
portiona1513
departition?c1530
dividend1535
portioning1556
reparting1574
repartment1574
parcery1582
sharing1598
apportion1628
compartition1636
department1677
dividing1719
whacking1851
partitionment1864
divide1873
share-out1877
whack1885
sharesies1916
carve-up1935
a1513 R. Fabyan New Cronycles Eng. & Fraunce (1516) I. cxlix. f. lxxixv After ye whiche porcion Charlmayne herynge of the dyuycion & stryfe among the Almayns..sped hym thyther.
1635 J. Swan Speculum Mundi vi. §2. 213 That proportion is quite taken away which God the Creatour hath observed in all other things; making them all in number, weight and measure, in an excellent portion and harmonie.
Phrases
† (by) even portion (and variants): in equal shares or amounts. Similarly by equal portions, etc. Obsolete.
ΚΠ
c1384 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(2)) (1850) 2 Macc. viii. 30 Thei departiden mo preyes, euen porcioun, to feble, faderlesse, and moderlesse and widues.
c1400 Brut (Rawl. B. 171) 255 (MED) Þe Scottes were bonden to þe Kyng in xxx M li. of siluer, to ben paiede wiþin iij ȝere, þat is to seyne, euery ȝere x M li., by even porcions.
?a1425 (?1373) Lelamour Herbal (1938) f. 1v (MED) A plaister of sache [read ache] and doust of mylk and eggis by even porcion helpith.
?c1450 Life St. Cuthbert (1891) 4796 And parted in to twa knyghts hande Be euen porcioune.
1453 in F. B. Bickley Little Red Bk. Bristol (1900) II. 202 (MED) The saide preest..shall..be paide for his salarie..vj li. vj s. viij d. at iiij termes of the yere..by equall porcions.
1480 W. Caxton Chron. Eng. ccxvii. 204 xxx thousand pounde of syluer to be payed within iii yere..euery yere x thousand pound by euyn porcyons.
1526 Treasure of Pore Men sig. Iiiiv Water of Borage and of Fymtore medeled to geder by euen porcion.
Compounds
portion control n. regulation of the size of food portions, esp. (in the catering industry) to reduce costs.
ΚΠ
1938 Amer. Restaurant Mag. June 42 Portion control. Standard portion chart to instruct the server in serving proper portion sizes.
1998 Grocer 22 Aug. 48/1 Uddin believes the appeal of Boil in the Bag..lies in portion control and ease of use.
portion-controlled adj. subject to portion control.
ΚΠ
1950 N.Y. Times 16 Dec. 12 f/3 (advt.) Government inspected fresh or frozen portion controlled meats.
2000 A. Bourdain Kitchen Confid. (2001) 73 Unless you like frozen, portion-controlled ‘convenience food’.
portion money n. now chiefly historical money making up a portion (esp. in sense 1d).
ΘΚΠ
society > society and the community > kinship or relationship > marriage or wedlock > wedding or nuptials > gifts and payments > [noun] > dowry
moryeveOE
marriagea1325
dowing1382
dowerc1386
dowrya1400
marriage money1454
marriage good1478
tocher1496
dote1509
jointurea1513
portion1513
endowry1523
tocher-good1538
dowagea1552
marriage dowrya1616
wedding-dowera1616
marriage portion1616
portion money1625
fortune1702
dot1822
1625 W. Boswell Let. 3 June in H. Ellis Orig. Lett. Eng. Hist. (1824) 1st Ser. III. 195 Her portion money..is already paying here.
1710 Quakers Art of Courtship x. 126 It was..the Opinion of a certain Friend, that Womens Portion-money used to be drawn over a Gridiron, and so Nineteen parts of Twenty dropped through, and never came into the Husband's Purse.
1901 Times 19 Jan. 14/3 It appeared that the amount of the portion money due to Mr. Frederick Cavendish on his attaining his majority was not £15,000 but £14,500.
1995 A. L. Erickson Women & Property Early Mod. Eng. 121 Both the rise of portions and the fall in the ratio of portion to jointure, at differential rates, can be partly explained by the use to which portion money was put at different social levels.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, December 2006; most recently modified version published online June 2022).
portionv.
/ˈpɔːʃn/, U.S. /ˈpɔrʃ(ə)n/ 1.
a. transitive. To divide into portions or shares; to distribute in shares; to share out; = apportion v. 2.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > possession > giving > distributing or dealing out > distribute or deal out [verb (transitive)] > divide into shares > divide and share out
dealc1000
shiftc1000
to-partc1325
partc1330
departa1340
divide1377
portion?a1400
dressc1410
parcel1416
skiftc1420
describe1535
repart1540
sever1548
disparklea1552
enterparten1556
share1577
to share out1583
repartitec1603
dispart1629
parcena1641
cavel1652
partage1660
split1674
snack1675
partition1740
scantle1749
appart1798
whack1819
divvy1877
number1887
cut1928
?a1400 (a1338) R. Mannyng Chron. (Petyt) ii. 51 (MED) Þe barons portiond þe lond euen þam bituene.
c1450 Practica Phisicalia John of Burgundy in H. Schöffler Mittelengl. Medizinlit. (1919) 202 (MED) Take racyns off gynger, the levys and ryndis off hyllerne..grynd them to-gyddyr and medyll the juce with hony..and porcoun them in evyn quantyte.
1587 J. Bridges Def. Govt. Church of Eng. xv. 1243 They did portion out among them selues certaine partes and limites of the worlde, wherein they woulde preache.
1667 R. Fage Cosmography 120 [He] built a Town called Henrico, and portioned out the adjacent Country into Hundreds.
1697 J. Dryden tr. Virgil Æneis i, in tr. Virgil Wks. 210 Some strip the Skin, some portion out the Spoil.
1725 W. Broome in A. Pope et al. tr. Homer Odyssey II. viii. 514 Now each partakes the feast, the wine prepares, Portions the food, and each his portion shares.
a1763 W. Shenstone Ess. in Wks. (1765) II. 87 The journey seemed to be portioned into four distinct stages.
1816 J. Austen Emma II. xi. 207 The interesting employment had followed, of..portioning out the indispensable division of space to each couple. View more context for this quotation
1887 C. Bowen tr. Virgil Æneid v, in tr. Virgil in Eng. Verse 237 After the races are ended, the prizes portioned as due.
1920 Conquest May 309//2 The antivenine..after its antitoxic value has been ascertained..is portioned out into small sterilised bottles.
1953 S. J. Perelman in New Yorker Mag. 29 Aug. 23/3 They are portioned into appetizing mouth-size chunks, sprinkled with mace, dill.
1986 S. Orbach Hunger Strike iv. 92 Laura's mother portioned out the amounts she felt were adequate.
2001 Star 6 Jan. 67/1 I have all my meals portioned, calorie-counted and delivered to my home.
b. transitive. To allot or assign (a quality, gift, etc.) to a person; = apportion v. 1. Also with out. Now rare.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > possession > giving > distributing or dealing out > distribute or deal out [verb (transitive)] > assign or allot > to a person as his share
britOE
dealc1400
lotc1400
allow?c1450
allot1473
proportion1581
apportion1587
portion1587
share1596
allocate1616
locate1816
1587 J. Bridges Def. Govt. Church of Eng. xiv. 1170 We haue long expected, what yet at last or at least, (after euerie of the Tetrarches, had his seuerall and ioynt authoritie portioned out vnto him) they woulde leaue in remaynder to the authoritie, of the ciuill Christian Magistrate.
1665 J. Brown Apologeticall Relation Sufferings Church Scotl. xxiii. 396 The Pope, who..made all Christian Bishops and Ministers, but as his slaves & vassels, portioning out to them such measure of jurisdiction, as he thought fit.
1871 R. Browning Balaustion 143 No: it was praise, I portioned thee, Of being good true husband to thy wife!
1904 Ld. Burghclere Virg. Georg. i. 43 Not that the gods Have portioned them some special gift [L. quia sit divinitus illis Ingenium], or fate Bestowed a deeper sense of things to be.
2004 World Markets Anal. (Nexis) 12 Jan. The last attempt to follow the UN plan broke down in March 2003, with Denktash portioned the blame for the failure of the talks.
c. transitive. To separate (a part of something) off from the whole. Frequently in passive.
ΚΠ
1777 W. Hooper tr. C.-A. Helvétius Treat. Man I. xx. 210 In an open level country..in the middle of which rose a bed of strawberries..different parts of which they portioned off for the nourishment of themselves and their families.
1833 Times 15 Jan. 5/6 The large room..was occupied by four tables, extending the entire length of the room, except a small space usually portioned off for the concert orchestra.
1879 Jrnl. Royal Anthropol. Inst. 8 31 It was probably a small private sanctum portioned off from or attached to the house.
1934 E. D. Mitchell & B. S. Mason Theory of Play xix. 489 Portion off the administration of events... Divide the field into different assembly places... Have two or more information bureaus.
2005 Times Colonist (Victoria, Brit. Columbia) (Nexis) 16 June c5 It is critical that Ogden Point remain as a working port, and not be portioned off and redeveloped for use that is not compatible with industry.
ΘΚΠ
the world > relative properties > wholeness > mutual relation of parts to whole > condition or state of being mixed or blended > mix or blend [verb (transitive)] > in due proportion
temperc1386
portiona1450
a1450 Late Middle Eng. Treat. on Horses (1978) 103 (MED) Tak quycseluer & freische grece & hony, porcioun þese þre to-gederis.
1811 J. Parkins Young Man's Best Compan. 514 Roman oker..when properly portioned with gum-water.
3. transitive. To settle goods or property on, endow; (sometimes) spec. to give a dowry or dower to; to marry off with a dowry. Also figurative.
ΘΚΠ
society > law > transfer of property > settlement of property > settle (property) [verb (transitive)] > endow
worthOE
goodOE
dow1297
allowc1400
rentc1400
endowc1440
enduec1440
seizec1450
empossessc1500
revestc1500
indot1520
endote1528
dotatec1540
estate1609
instate1614
portion1663
vest1748
fortune1838
society > society and the community > kinship or relationship > marriage or wedlock > wedding or nuptials > gifts and payments > [verb (transitive)] > give as dowry > give dowry to
endow1528–30
dote1560
tochera1578
dowry1588
endower1606
dowera1616
indotate1647
portion1836
fortune1838
dot1887
1663 E. Waterhouse Fortescutus Illustratus 374 They breed their sons to Learning and Callings of Worship, and having well-bred and well-portioned their Daughters, married them into generous families, and unto men whose Merits make their way to Honour and Eminency.
1665 E. Waterhouse Gentlemans Monitor xlv. 488 This is to be taught of God, as dear children, and to be portioned by him, as dear children.
1732 T. Dawson tr. Demosthenes in tr. Aeschines & Demosthenes Orations conc. Crown 296 I will not boast of having ransomed any of my fellow-citizens from Captivity, of having portioned off any of their Daughters, or of having done any other Actions of that kind.
1765 S. Foote Commissary III. 51 When you have..portioned off eight or nine of her sisters, it is not impossible that my lord may be prevailed on to suffer your name.
1772 R. B. Sheridan Let. (1966) I. 53 Any of the Noblesse [in France] who find their fortune insufficient to Portion their Daughters, can prevent the sad perilous effects of their being left unportion'd Orphans, by shutting them in a charity.
1836 J. Murray Hand-bk. for Travellers on Continent 407/2 Louis of Arnstein, having no son, married and portioned off his seven daughters, dividing among them a part of his estates.
1855 M. Arnold Balder Dead 114 That one, long portion'd with his doom of death, Should change his lot, and fill another's life.
1910 Encycl. Brit. I. 114/1 His daughters were portioned by his fellow-citizens, the fortune he left behind being..very small.
1914 Delta (Pa.) Herald & Times 5 June He redeemed his father's estate and portioned off his sisters.
1938 G. G. Coulton Medieval Panorama xxxv. 463 He dowered his wife, portioned his two daughters as nuns, and began an evangelical life.
1993 E. Bloom & L. Bloom Piozzi Lett. III. 369 12 young maidens portioned by the Commune, and intended to be married the next day.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, December 2006; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.?1316
v.?a1400