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
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
Emails in those folders still count toward your Yahoo Mail quota until they're permanently removed.
—
Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 11 Aug. 2025
In a recent Wall Street Journal op-ed, former Senator Phil Gramm, R-Texas, explained the 1981 car quotas as a political necessity.
—Joseph Thorndike, Forbes.com, 4 Aug. 2025
The deal between Washington and London centered on a 10% baseline tariff on British goods arriving in the States, while also setting certain quotas and exemptions for autos and aerospace exports.
—Holly Ellyatt, CNBC, 25 July 2025
But for his debut, Byron Lars upped the quota by creating custom clothes for Susan Calabria Design’s guest room.
—Rosemary Feitelberg, Footwear News, 18 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for quota
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 11 Aug. 2025
In a recent Wall Street Journal op-ed, former Senator Phil Gramm, R-Texas, explained the 1981 car quotas as a political necessity.
—Joseph Thorndike, Forbes.com, 4 Aug. 2025
The deal between Washington and London centered on a 10% baseline tariff on British goods arriving in the States, while also setting certain quotas and exemptions for autos and aerospace exports.
—Holly Ellyatt, CNBC, 25 July 2025
But for his debut, Byron Lars upped the quota by creating custom clothes for Susan Calabria Design’s guest room.
—Rosemary Feitelberg, Footwear News, 18 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for quota
Cite this Entry
“Quota.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/quota. Accessed 20 Aug. 2025.
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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