1
: a proportional part or share
especially
: the share or proportion assigned to each in a division or to each member of a body
2
: the number or amount constituting a proportional share
3
: a fixed number or percentage of minority group members or women needed to meet the requirements of affirmative action
Synonyms
Examples of quota in a Sentence
The agency imposes strict fishing quotas.
The company has imposed quotas on hiring.
He lost his driver's license because he exceeded the quota of traffic violations.
The department set new sales quotas in January.
Recent Examples on the Web
Processing times now stretch from several months to years, with some countries implementing annual quotas to manage the influx of wealthy applicants.
—
David Faris, Newsweek, 2 Nov. 2024
Her top priority would be to increase the percentage of affordable housing to 20% of overall projects, and ensure that developers do not cut corners by splitting single-unit housing into smaller townhomes to meet the quota.
—Hema Sivanandam, The Mercury News, 16 Oct. 2024
Once retrieved, souls can be placed in the Netherworld Portal to meet the soul quota.
—Jennifer Maas, Variety, 3 Oct. 2024
Increasing demand, greater awareness of ADHD leading to more diagnoses, manufacturer delays and drug quota limits are all factors for the shortage, but widespread solutions are currently at an impasse.
—Sabrina Moreno, Axios, 30 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for quota 
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David Faris, Newsweek, 2 Nov. 2024
Her top priority would be to increase the percentage of affordable housing to 20% of overall projects, and ensure that developers do not cut corners by splitting single-unit housing into smaller townhomes to meet the quota.
—Hema Sivanandam, The Mercury News, 16 Oct. 2024
Once retrieved, souls can be placed in the Netherworld Portal to meet the soul quota.
—Jennifer Maas, Variety, 3 Oct. 2024
Increasing demand, greater awareness of ADHD leading to more diagnoses, manufacturer delays and drug quota limits are all factors for the shortage, but widespread solutions are currently at an impasse.
—Sabrina Moreno, Axios, 30 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for quota
Dictionary Entries Near quota
Cite this Entry
“Quota.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/quota. Accessed 21 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
quota
noun
quo·ta
ˈkwōt-ə 
1
: a share or part assigned to each member of a group
2
: the number or amount making up a quota
Legal Definition
quota
noun
quo·ta
ˈkwō-tə
1
: a proportional part or share assigned to each in a body
2
: a specific amount that serves as a minimum or maximum
a law against traffic ticket quotas
Etymology
Medieval Latin, from Latin quota pars how great a part
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