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
Hajj permits are allocated to countries on a quota system and Saudi Arabia requires each pilgrim to acquire one of the 1.8 million available licenses to legally access Mecca.
—
Zahid Mahmood, CNN, 23 June 2024
By June 2011, the government had announced a Saudi employment quota for private-sector firms and an unemployment program that offered monthly financial assistance to job seekers.
—Jennifer Peck, Foreign Affairs, 19 June 2024
Warehouse quota regulations similar to the California law are now on the books in Washington state, New York, Oregon and Minnesota, according to the Warehouse Worker Resource Center statement.
—Caroline O'Donovan, Washington Post, 18 June 2024
The amount far exceeded the quotas in Maine and South Carolina combined.
—Paige Williams, The New Yorker, 17 June 2024
See all Example Sentences for quota 
Zahid Mahmood, CNN, 23 June 2024
By June 2011, the government had announced a Saudi employment quota for private-sector firms and an unemployment program that offered monthly financial assistance to job seekers.
—Jennifer Peck, Foreign Affairs, 19 June 2024
Warehouse quota regulations similar to the California law are now on the books in Washington state, New York, Oregon and Minnesota, according to the Warehouse Worker Resource Center statement.
—Caroline O'Donovan, Washington Post, 18 June 2024
The amount far exceeded the quotas in Maine and South Carolina combined.
—Paige Williams, The New Yorker, 17 June 2024
See all Example Sentences for quota
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'quota.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near quota
Cite this Entry
“Quota.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/quota. Accessed 4 Jul. 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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