A fraction is a number such as ½ or ¾, and also a small part of something: a fraction of a second. In everyday life, the second meaning is more common: for a fraction of the price means for much less than usual. A group of politicians within a party is a faction. In chemistry, the fractions of oil really are fractions, but that's a specialist term.
fraction: will you get the meaning right?
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a fraction of + a second / the cost / the price; a small/tiny fraction of + noun; add/divide + fractions
- I bought this winter jacket in the sale for a fraction of the original price.
- My son is learning to add fractions, and I've already forgotten how to do it.
- Only a small fraction of the students handed in their essays on time.
What changed
First versionThe opposition fraction voted against the new law.
RevisionThe opposition faction voted against the new law.
In some languages, the word for a political group in parliament looks like fraction, so it slips in almost automatically. But the right word is faction, without the r. Fraction means a number or a small part, so the sentence stops making sense.
A part that someone owns or receives is a share: She owns a 30% share in the company. Fraction isn't used like that: it stresses that the part is small, as in a tiny fraction of the budget.
Your turn
The new laptop is really fast: it opens any program in a ___ of a second.
Show the answer
fraction — A fraction of a second means an instant, which is how people describe speed. A faction is a group of people within a party or organisation and has nothing to do with time.
Write about a good bargain you got. Name the item and compare its price with the usual one, using a fraction of.
I bought a second-hand bike online for a fraction of the price of a new one, and it works perfectly.
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