apportion

From Middle French apportionner, from Old French aporcioner, from Late Latin apportionare, from Latin ad + portio. See portion.

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /əˈpɔːʃən/

  • Audio (Southern England)

    (file)

• (General American) IPA^(key): /əˈpɔɹʃən/
• Rhymes: -ɔː(ɹ)ʃən

apportion (third-person singular simple present apportions, present participle apportioning, simple past and past participle apportioned)

1. (transitive) To divide and distribute portions of a whole.

   The controlling party had apportioned the voting districts such that their party would be favored in the next election.

2. (transitive) Specifically, to do so in a fair and equitable manner; to allocate proportionally.

   The children were required to dump all of their Halloween candy on the table so that their parents could apportion it among them.

   • 2023 April 10, The Editorial Board, “Biden’s Trip to Northern Ireland and the Power of Diplomacy”, in The New York Times‎, →ISSN:

     The Good Friday Agreement did not, and could not, apportion blame for the Troubles, in which, as in so many such conflicts, one side’s terrorist is the other’s hero.

• (divide and distribute): allocate, allot, dispense, parcel out, share out

• (divide and distribute): amass, concentrate, consolidate, gather, reassemble

• appointor