Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A fixed portion, especially an amount of food allotted to persons in military service or to civilians in times of scarcity.
  • noun Food issued or available to members of a group.
  • transitive verb To supply with rations.
  • transitive verb To distribute as rations.
  • transitive verb To restrict to limited allotments, as during wartime: synonym: distribute.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun An allowance of means of subsistence for a fixed period of time; specifically, in the army and navy, an allotment or apportionment of provisions for daily consumption to each officer and man, or of forage for each horse.
  • noun Any stated or fixed amount or quantity dealt out; an allowance or allotment.
  • To supply with rations; provision.
  • To divide into rations; distribute or apportion in rations.
  • noun In stock-feeding, the sum of food regularly supplied to an animal, usually the amount per day.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • transitive verb To supply with rations, as a regiment.
  • noun A fixed daily allowance of provisions assigned to a soldier in the army, or a sailor in the navy, for his subsistence.
  • noun Hence, a certain portion or fixed amount dealt out; an allowance; an allotment.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun A portion designated to a person or group.
  • verb transitive To supply with a ration; to limit (someone) to a specific allowance of something.
  • verb transitive To portion out (especially during a shortage of supply); to limit access to.
  • verb transitive To restrict (an activity etc.)

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • verb restrict the consumption of a relatively scarce commodity, as during war
  • verb distribute in rations, as in the army
  • noun a fixed portion that is allotted (especially in times of scarcity)
  • noun the food allowance for one day (especially for service personnel)

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[French, from Latin ratiō, ratiōn-, calculation; see ratio.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From French ration.

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