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Part and portion: Difference between revisions
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Amwelladmin (talk | contribs) (Created page with "{{a|plainenglish|}}{{quote| {{d|Part|/pɑːt/|n|}} An amount or section which, when combined with others, makes up the whole of something. {{d|Portion|/ˈpɔːʃᵊn/|n}} A part of a whole.}} Well, they are exact synonyms. Thereby, we should prefer part to portion because it is shorter and simpler. “Portion” probably exists to suit lawyers, who have a keening, er, ''ceteris paribus'', for synonyms that sound longer and more complicated. And when synonyms are conc...") |
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{{d|Portion|/ˈpɔːʃᵊn/|n}} | {{d|Portion|/ˈpɔːʃᵊn/|n}} | ||
A part of a whole.}} | A part of a whole.}} | ||
Well, they are exact synonyms. Thereby, we should prefer part to portion because it is shorter and simpler. | Well, they are exact synonyms. Thereby, we should prefer part to portion because it is shorter and simpler. On this view “portion” probably exists only to suit [[lawyer]]<nowiki/>s, who have a yen, er, ''[[ceteris paribus]]'', for words that are longer and more complicated over ones that are short and squat. | ||
A | And when true synonyms are concerned, by definition all else ''is'' equal. | ||
A “portion” feels some what more like a unitary subdivision of a greater massed whole: a ''portion'' of fries; a ''portion'' of notes, whereas a “part” is a bit of something less plainly divisible: a ''part'' of my biscuit; a ''part'' of the security package — on this view ''part'' is to ''portion'' as ''less'' is to ''fewer'' — but the JC just made it up, so I wouldn’t bet the farm on it. | |||