Quota

'kwōtə

nounmedium📊CommonGeneral
1 meaning2 idioms/phrases3 questions

Definitions

1

A prescribed or proportional share, especially of something such as goods, allotted to each of a number of people.

'kwōtə

nounneutralmedium
General

A fixed share or amount of something that a person or group is entitled to receive or is bound to contribute or is allowed to have or do.

The company met its sales quota for the quarter.

💡 Simply: Imagine you and your friends are sharing a pizza. Each person gets a specific number of slices. That specific number of slices is your quota, or how much you're allowed.

👶 For kids: It's like getting a certain amount of something, like how much candy you're allowed to eat!

More Examples

2

The government implemented a quota on imported goods.

3

Each student was assigned a quota of books to read.

How It's Used

Business

"The company set a sales quota for each employee."

Government

"The government established immigration quotas."

Production

"The factory has a daily production quota."

Synonyms & Antonyms

Idioms & expressions

achieve the quota

To successfully meet the assigned quota.

"The sales team worked hard to achieve their quota this month."

set a quota

To establish or fix a quota.

"The manager set a quota for the team's output."

From Italian *quota* meaning 'share' or 'portion', originating from the Latin *quot* meaning 'how many' or 'how much'.

Historically used to regulate resource distribution, trade, and migration, often to control supply and demand.

Memory tip

Think of a 'portion' or 'share' that's been fixed or pre-set.

Word Origin

LanguageItalian
Original meaning

"share, portion"

sales quotaproduction quotaimport quotaimmigration quotaachieve a quotameet a quotaset a quota

Common misspellings

quotasquataqouta

Usage

40%Spoken
60%Written