# ratio

Pronunciation: US say "RAY-shoh" /ˈɹeɪ.ʃoʊ/; UK say "RAY-shee-oh" /ˈɹeɪ.ʃi.əʊ/

## Noun

1. The relative sizes of two quantities, usually written as one number divided by another.
   - Simple: A comparison of two amounts that shows how big one is next to the other.
   - _The recipe calls for a flour-to-water ratio of two to one._
   - _To enlarge the drawing without distorting it, keep the ratio of width to height the same._
2. On social media, the number of replies a post draws set against its likes; also the rebuke this shows when replies swamp the likes or a reply outscores the post. *(slang)*
   - Simple: On social media, a post's replies compared with its likes. Far more replies, or a reply with more likes, shows dislike.
   - _The senator's announcement earned a savage ratio within minutes of posting._
   - _Editors watched the ratio climb as users piled into the replies to object._

## Verb

3. On social media, to show up a post by flooding it with more replies than it has likes, or with a reply that outscores it in likes, especially to condemn or mock its author. *(slang)*
   - Simple: On social media, to mock a post by swamping it with replies or getting more likes on a reply than it gets.
   - _Critics ratioed the brand's tone-deaf advertisement within hours._
   - _Whenever he posts something inflammatory, other users ratio him mercilessly._

## Interjection

4. A one-word reply on social media used to signal disagreement with or dislike of the post it answers. *(slang)*
   - Simple: A one-word reply posted to show that you disagree with or dislike someone's post.
   - _The replies were a wall of "Ratio" aimed at the controversial post._
   - _"Ratio," came the curt response to his bad take._

## Other meanings

- (noun) In law, the principle on which a court's decision rests, the part that binds later cases; short for ratio decidendi.

## Origin

Ration and reason are doublets of this word, which English borrowed from Latin "ratiō".

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/ratio (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).