ratio
noun
ra·tio
| \ ˈrā-(ˌ)shō
, -shē-ˌō\
, -shē-ˌō\
plural ratios
Definition of ratio
1a
: the indicated quotient of two mathematical expressions
b
: the relationship in quantity, amount, or size between two or more things : proportion
2
: the expression of the relative values of gold and silver as determined by a country's currency laws
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Examples of ratio in a Sentence
What is the length-to-width ratio?
the ratio of students to teachers in the school is nine to one
Recent Examples on the Web
Get our daily newsletter The researchers’ interest was in the isotopic ratios, in the teeth under investigation, of two chemical elements: oxygen and strontium. — The Economist, "Who did the Maya sacrifice?," 1 Aug. 2019 Or there's the Sport, which comes with AWD as standard, plus a stiffer steering rack, quicker steering ratio, and more aggressive suspension tuning. — Jonathan M. Gitlin, Ars Technica, "The 2020 Cadillac XT6: Better than an Escalade in every way," 29 July 2019 After being promoted from Triple-A New Orleans, Hernandez made five starts, notching a 4.12 ERA and impressive 5.33 strikeout-to-walk ratio (32 strikeouts, six walks). — Wells Dusenbury, sun-sentinel.com, "Amid recent struggles, Marlins move Trevor Richards to bullpen," 26 July 2019 In comparison, Charleston County in South Carolina had one of the highest ratios, with 248 pills being supplied per person each year. — Katrina Pross, Twin Cities, "Report traces opioid drug distribution, including in east metro," 26 July 2019 As a result, campuses are struggling with crowded classrooms, a rising faculty-to-student ratio, and deteriorating buildings and facilities. — Teresa Watanabe, Los Angeles Times, "UC admits largest and most diverse class ever of Californian freshmen," 22 July 2019 Turbo mode can quickly overwhelm the bike’s single-speed gear ratio, however. — Thomas Ricker, The Verge, "Byar Volta is a shaft-driven e-bike that might never need charging," 17 July 2019 This ratio, though, translated into a surprisingly wide range of pedagogical approaches. — E. Tammy Kim, The New Yorker, "The Messy Reality of Personalized Learning," 10 July 2019 Student loan debt, exacerbated by a high debt-to-income ratio in the profession, is one of several key factors playing into the suicide epidemic, the CDC found. — oregonlive.com, "Oregon tackles the veterinary suicide crisis, starting with the stigma," 10 July 2019These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'ratio.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for ratio
ratio
noun
English Language Learners Definition of ratio
: the relationship that exists between the size, number, or amount of two things and that is often represented by two numbers
See the full definition for ratio in the English Language Learners Dictionary
ratio
noun
ra·tio
| \ ˈrā-shō
, -shē-ˌō\
, -shē-ˌō\
plural ratios
Kids Definition of ratio
: the relationship in number or quantity between two or more things
the ratio of teachers to students
ratio
noun
ra·tio
| \ ˈrā-(ˌ)shō, -shē-ˌō
\
\
plural ratios
Medical Definition of ratio
: the relationship in quantity, amount, or size between two or more things — see sex ratio
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