fraction

US /ˈfɹæk.ʃən/ See IPA manual

Freq #12091

Meanings

1

noun
A small part of something larger.

Only a small fraction of the students passed the difficult exam.
2

noun
A number that expresses part of a whole, such as 1/2 or 3/4.

The teacher showed the class how to add two fractions together.
3

noun
A very small amount.

She finished the race a fraction faster than her rival.

Thesaurus

Word family

Forms fractions

Derived forms abfractionbiofractioncontinued-fractionfractilefractionablefractionalfractionalismfractionalistfractionalityfractionalizationfractionalizefractionalizing

Related forms divisionfractalfractious fracture fragile fragileness fragility fragment frailfrailnessfrailtyfrangibility

Appears in

Phrases (1)

See all

improper fraction
a fraction whose numerator is at least as large as its denominator

Adjective + noun

Simplified etymology

Fraction comes from Latin frangere, “to break.” Medieval mathematicians used the word for numbers that were not whole. Fracture, fragile, and fragment share the same Latin root.

Etymology

Etymology tree Middle English fraccioun English fraction From Middle English fraccioun (“a breaking”), from Anglo-Norman, Old French fraccion, from Medieval Latin fractio (“a fragment, portion”), from earlier Latin fractio (“a breaking, a breaking into pieces”), from fractus, past participle of frangere (“to break”) (whence English frangible), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰreg- (English break). Doublet of frazione.

*bʰreg- Proto-Indo-European fraccioun Middle English fraccion Old French fractio Latin

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Numbers & Quantity Word Formation & Derivatives

External links

# fraction

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C1
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** /ˈfɹæk.ʃən/
**Frequency rank:** 12091

## Meanings
1. A small part of something larger.
2. A number that expresses part of a whole, such as 1/2 or 3/4.
3. A very small amount.

## Examples
- Only a small fraction of the students passed the difficult exam.
- The teacher showed the class how to add two fractions together.
- She finished the race a fraction faster than her rival.

## Derived Forms
- abfraction
- biofraction
- continued-fraction
- fractile
- fractionable
- fractional
- fractionalism
- fractionalist
- fractionality
- fractionalization
- fractionalize
- fractionalizing

## Related Forms
- division
- fractal
- fractious
- fracture
- fragile
- fragileness
- fragility
- fragment
- frail
- frailness
- frailty
- frangibility

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: *bʰreg-
- Root: fraccioun
- Root: fraccion
- Root: fractio

## Etymology
Etymology tree Middle English fraccioun English fraction From Middle English fraccioun (“a breaking”), from Anglo-Norman, Old French fraccion, from Medieval Latin fractio (“a fragment, portion”), from earlier Latin fractio (“a breaking, a breaking into pieces”), from fractus, past participle of frangere (“to break”) (whence English frangible), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰreg- (English break). Doublet of frazione.

## AI Etymology
Fraction is from Middle English fraccioun (“a breaking”), from Anglo-Norman, Old French fraccion, from Medieval Latin fractio (“a fragment, portion”), from earlier Latin fractio (“a breaking, a breaking into pieces”), from fractus, past participle of frangere (“to break”) (whence English frangible), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰreg- (English break). Doublet of frazione. In present-day use, it can mean a small part of something larger, or a number that expresses part of a whole, such as 1/2 or 3/4. Related forms include division, fractal, fractious, fracture, fragile. Derived formations include abfraction, biofraction, continued-fraction, fractile, fractionable.

## Topics
- Numbers & Quantity
- Word Formation & Derivatives

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