pro·por·tion
(prə-pôŕshən, -pōŕ-)
[Middle English proporcion, from Old French proportion, from Latin prōportiō, prōportiōn-, from prō portiōne, according to (each) part, prō, according to; see pro–1, + portiōne ablative of portiō, part.]
noun
- A part considered in relation to the whole.
- A relationship between things or parts of things with respect to comparative magnitude, quantity, or degree: the proper proportion between oil and vinegar in the dressing.
- A relationship between quantities such that if one varies then another varies in a manner dependent on the first: “We do not always find visible happiness in proportion to visible virtue” (Samuel Johnson)
- Agreeable or harmonious relation of parts within a whole; balance or symmetry.
- Dimensions; size. Often used in the plural.
- Mathematics A statement of equality between two ratios. Four quantities, a, b, c, d, are said to be in proportion if = .
transitive verb: -tioned, -tion·ing, -tions.
- To adjust so that proper relations between parts are attained.
- To form the parts of with balance or symmetry.
derivatives
- pro·poŕtion·a·ble
- adjective
- pro·poŕtion·a·bly
- adverb
- pro·poŕtion·er
- noun
- pro·poŕtion·ment
- noun
synonyms:
proportion, harmony, symmetry, balance These nouns mean aesthetic arrangement marked by proper distribution of elements. Proportion is the agreeable relation of parts within a whole: a house with rooms of gracious proportion. Harmony is the pleasing interaction or appropriate combination of elements: the harmony of your facial features. Symmetry and balance both imply an arrangement of parts on either side of a dividing line, but symmetry frequently emphasizes mirror-image correspondence of parts, while balance often suggests dissimilar parts that offset each other harmoniously: flowers planted in perfect symmetry around the pool. “In all perfectly beautiful objects, there is found the opposition of one part to another, and a reciprocal balance” (John Ruskin)
