Meaning & use
ration
Last updated
Meanings
nouncountable
A fixed amount of food or another scarce item that each person is officially allowed to have.
Grammar: Countable: you can say a ration, two rations, or rations. Often used in the plural when talking about the system.
Patterns
- a ration of something
- on rations
- cut/reduce rations
During the war, each family received a weekly ration of butter and sugar.
The prisoners were given only one ration of bread a day.
The government introduced rations for gasoline during the shortage.
verbtransitive
To limit the amount of something each person can have, especially officially during a shortage.
Grammar: Takes an object: ration something. Often used in the passive: be rationed.
Patterns
- ration something
- be rationed to someone
- ration something out
The authorities decided to ration water during the drought.
Fuel was rationed to two gallons per car per week.
She rationed the children's sweets to one piece a day.
verbtransitive
To use or give out something in small controlled amounts, not necessarily officially.
Grammar: Often followed by out: ration out the supplies.
Patterns
- ration something out
- ration out something
He rationed out his savings to make them last until spring.
The teacher rationed out the art supplies so everyone had a fair share.
Word forms
| plural | rations |
|---|---|
| third person singular | rations |
| past tense | rationed |
| past participle | rationed |
| -ing form | rationing |
Common combinations
- food ration
- The soldiers opened their food ration at noon.
- daily ration
- Each prisoner received a daily ration of rice.
- ration book
- My grandmother still has her old ration book from the 1940s.
- on short rations
- The explorers were on short rations for the last week.
- ration something out
- We had to ration out the medicine until the next delivery.
Synonyms and how they differ
- allowance
- A general word for an amount you are allowed; it doesn't always suggest official limits during a shortage.
- quota
- A fixed share or maximum, often for imports or production; less common for food during a crisis.
- portion
- A part of a whole, especially of food served to one person; it doesn't imply official restriction.
Word family
- rationing noun
- The system of limiting how much people can buy or use.
- rationed adjective
- Limited to a fixed amount; e.g., rationed supplies.
Commonly confused: ration or rational?
ration vs rational
Rational means logical or sensible; ration is about limited amounts. They sound similar but are unrelated in meaning.
Practice
During the fuel crisis, the government decided to ______ gasoline to each driver.
Choose one answer.
After 'to' we need the base form of the verb: 'to ration'. 'Rationing' is a gerund or noun, 'rationed' is past tense, and 'rations' is a noun or third-person verb, none of which fit after 'to' here.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “ration”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.