proportion

/pɹəˈpɔɹʃən/

//pɹəˈpɔɹʃən// noun

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"proportion" is a 10-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“proportion” has 16 generated spelling variants in the English index at frequency #6,002. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#6,002
frequency rank, English
4,417
“P” headwords
16
tracked misspellings
5
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A quantity of something that is part of the whole amount or number.

Corpus desk

Index EN-proportion · proportion · English

proportion · rank #6,002 · 16 variants · 5 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #6,002
  • LEN-MEGA 10 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 5 pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 16 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,417
  • PHOTO-FINISH promising

Nearest frequency peer: promising (-1 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Rank peers near misspelling magnet “proportion”

Same rarity band: useful when a typo lands on a peer headword

corpus weight

What this shows “proportion” sits among these FrequencyWords peers; misspelling depth is tracked separately in the edit-distance chart.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

proportion vs proposition
82% similar
proportion vs proportions
91% similar
proportion vs proportional
83% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for proportion
PropertyValue
Headwordproportion
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/pɹəˈpɔɹʃən/
Letters10
Frequency rank#6,002
Misspellings tracked16
Confusable pairs5
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency seat of misspelling magnet “proportion”

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).proportionlands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Same rarity band neighbours include “promising” (#6,001), “preference” (#6,000), “rage” (#6,004). Among 4,417 “P” headwords, “proportion” is #6,002. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 16 spelling variants around proportion (IPA /pɹəˈpɔɹʃən/), anoun. Corpus frequency is #6,002 among 4,417 “P” headwords. Wiktionary lists 7 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 16 likely wrong-spelling variants for proportion, with forms such as "porportion", "pproportion", and "prooprtion". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 5 confusable-pair relationships, "proposition", "proportions", "proportional", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English proporcion, from Old French proportion, from Latin prōportiō (“comparative relation, proportion, symmetry, analogy”), from pro (“for, before”) + portio (“share, part”); see portion. The correct English form is proportion, spelled P-R-O-P-O-R-T-I-O-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    A quantity of something that is part of the whole amount or number.
  2. 2
    Harmonious relation of parts to each other or to the whole.
  3. 3
    Proper or equal share.
  4. 4
    The relation of one part to another or to the whole with respect to magnitude, quantity, or degree.
  5. 5
    A statement of equality between two ratios.
  6. 6
    The "rule of three", in which three terms are given to find a fourth.
  7. 7
    Size.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how proportion appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. “I don't mean all of your friends—only a small proportion—which, however, connects your circle with that deadly, idle, brainless bunch—the insolent chatterers at the opera, the gorged dowagers, the worn-out, passionless men, the enervated matrons of the summer capital,[…]!”
  2. Let the women[…]do the same things in their proportions and capacities.

Etymology

From Middle English proporcion, from Old French proportion, from Latin prōportiō (“comparative relation, proportion, symmetry, analogy”), from pro (“for, before”) + portio (“share, part”); see portion.

This word in other languages

proporción(Español)proportion(Français)Teil(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • porportion
  • pproportion
  • prooprtion
  • proporiton
  • proporrtion
  • proporsion
  • proportino
  • proportionn
  • proportoin
  • proporttion
  • propotrion
  • propportion
  • proprotion
  • prpoortion
  • prroportion
  • rpoportion

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of proportion - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

porportion2pproportion1prooprtion2proporiton2proporrtion1proporsion1proportino2proportionn1
Edit distance from "proportion"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "proportion"?
"proportion" is spelled P-R-O-P-O-R-T-I-O-N. The IPA pronunciation is /pɹəˈpɔɹʃən/.
What does "proportion" mean?
As a noun, "proportion" means: A quantity of something that is part of the whole amount or number.
What words are commonly confused with "proportion"?
"proportion" is commonly confused with "proposition", "proportions", "proportional". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "proportion"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "proportion" is /pɹəˈpɔɹʃən/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "proportion"?
From Middle English proporcion, from Old French proportion, from Latin prōportiō (“comparative relation, proportion, symmetry, analogy”), from pro (“for, before”) + portio (“share, part”); see portion. See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "proportion", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 10 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

preference#6,000advantages#6,020intentions#5,976calculated#6,031

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (16 here; floor ≥5).

Palestinian16 variantsunfortunate16 variantspreventing16 variantstechnically16 variants

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list