What does "part" mean?
A portion; a component.; A fraction of a whole.
Part
/pɑːt/ adj, adv, noun, verb, slang
adj, adv, noun, verb, slang ·Top 500 ·Elementary level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A portion; a component.; A fraction of a whole.
- Grammar: part is listed as adj, adv, noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: component, function, piece, portion.
- Useful contrasts: entire organism, total amount, whole entity.
- Usage evidence: Mathematics is the part of science you could continue to do if you woke up tomorrow and discovered the universe was gone.
How to use "part"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "part" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "part" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "part" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "part" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "part" is acting as adj, adv, noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "component" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "part", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A portion; a component.; A fraction of a whole.
"Gaul is divided into three parts."
- 2 the actions and activities assigned to or required or expected of a person or group wordnet
- 3 A portion; a component.; A distinct element of something larger.
"The parts of a chainsaw include the chain, engine, and handle."
- 4 the effort contributed by a person in bringing about a result wordnet
- 5 A portion; a component.; A group inside a larger group.
Show 26 more definitions
- 6 something less than the whole of a human artifact wordnet
- 7 A portion; a component.; Share, especially of a profit.
"I want my part of the bounty."
- 8 an item that is an instance of some type wordnet
- 9 A portion; a component.; A unit of relative proportion in a mixture.
"The mixture comprises one part sodium hydroxide and ten parts water."
- 10 a line of scalp that can be seen when sections of hair are combed in opposite directions wordnet
- 11 A portion; a component.; 3.5 centiliters of one ingredient in a mixed drink.
- 12 that which concerns a person with regard to a particular role or situation wordnet
- 13 A portion; a component.; A section of a document.
"Please turn to Part I, Chapter 2."
- 14 one of the portions into which something is regarded as divided and which together constitute a whole wordnet
- 15 A portion; a component.; A section of land; an area of a country or other territory; region.
"[…] the Faery knight / Besought that Damzell suffer him depart, / And yield him readie passage to that other part."
- 16 an actor's portrayal of someone in a play wordnet
- 17 A portion; a component.; A factor. dated
"3 is a part of 12."
- 18 the melody carried by a particular voice or instrument in polyphonic music wordnet
- 19 A portion; a component.; A room in a public building, especially a courtroom. US
- 20 the extended spatial location of something wordnet
- 21 A portion; a component.; A private part; genitalia. colloquial, euphemistic
"She wasn't wearing her medieval clothes anymore — she wasn't wearing anything. She was completely starkers — completely Billy bollocks. You could see everything even her part."
- 22 a portion of a natural object wordnet
- 23 Duty; responsibility.
"to do one’s part"
- 24 assets belonging to or due to or contributed by an individual person or group wordnet
- 25 Duty; responsibility.; Position or role (especially in a play).
"We all have a part to play."
- 26 something determined in relation to something that includes it wordnet
- 27 Duty; responsibility.; The melody played or sung by a particular instrument, voice, or group of instruments or voices, within a polyphonic piece.
"The first violin part in this concerto is very challenging."
- 28 Duty; responsibility.; Each of two contrasting sides of an argument, debate etc.; "hand".
"Meaning to gaine thereby, that the fruition of life, cannot perfectly be pleaſing vnto vs, if we ſtand in any feare to looſe it. A man might nevertheleſſe ſay on the contrarie part, that we embrace and claſp this good ſo much the harder, and with more affection, as we perceive it to be leſſe ſure, and feare it ſhould be taken from vs."
- 29 The dividing line formed by combing the hair in different directions. US
"The part of his hair was slightly to the left."
- 30 In the Hebrew lunisolar calendar, a unit of time equivalent to 3⅓ seconds. Judaism
- 31 A constituent of character or capacity; quality; faculty; talent; usually in the plural with a collective sense.
"which maintained so politic a state of evil, that they will not admit any good part to intermingle with them."
Verb
- 1 To leave the company of. intransitive
"He wrung Bassanio's hand, and so they parted."
- 2 force, take, or pull apart wordnet
- 3 To cut hair with a parting.
- 4 move or break apart wordnet
- 5 To divide in two. transitive
"to part the curtains"
Show 11 more definitions
- 6 depart for someplace wordnet
- 7 To be divided in two or separated. intransitive
"A rope parts. His hair parts in the middle."
- 8 go one's own way; move apart wordnet
- 9 To divide up; to share. archaic, transitive
"He that hath ij. cootes, lett hym parte with hym that hath none: And he that hath meate, let him do lyke wyse."
- 10 discontinue an association or relation; go different ways wordnet
- 11 To have a part or share; to partake. obsolete
"They shall part alike."
- 12 To separate or disunite; to remove from contact or contiguity; to sunder.
"The narrow seas that part / The French and English."
- 13 To hold apart; to stand or intervene between. obsolete
"The stumbling night did part our weary powers."
- 14 To separate by a process of extraction, elimination, or secretion.
"to part gold from silver"
- 15 To leave; to quit. archaic, transitive
"since presently your souls must part your bodies"
- 16 To leave (an IRC channel). Internet, transitive
"He parted the channel saying "SHUTUP!"[…]so I queried him, asking if there was something I could do[…]maybe talk[…]so we did[…]since then, I've been seeing him on IRC every day (really can't imagine him not being on IRC anymore actually)."
Adjective
- 1 Fractional; partial. not-comparable
"Fred was part owner of the car."
Adverb
- 1 Partly; partially; fractionally. not-comparable
"Part finished"
- 2 to a partial degree. not-comparable
"My Native American friend is also part German and part French."
Adverb
- 1 to some extent; in some degree; not wholly wordnet
Antonyms
entire organismtotal amountwhole entitywhole organism
Example
"Mathematics is the part of science you could continue to do if you woke up tomorrow and discovered the universe was gone."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "part"?
Common synonyms include: component, function, piece, portion, role, section.
How do you use "part" in a sentence?
Mathematics is the part of science you could continue to do if you woke up tomorrow and discovered the universe was gone.
How do you pronounce "part"?
Pronounced /pɑːt/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle English part, from Old English part (“part”) and Old French part (“part”); both from Latin partem, accusative of pars (“piece, portion, share, side, party, faction, role, character, lot, fate, task, lesson, part, member”), from Proto-Indo-European *par-, *per- (“to sell, exchange”). Akin to Latin portiō (“a portion, part”), parāre (“to make ready, prepare”). Displaced Middle English del, dele (“part”) (from Old English dǣl (“part, distribution”) > Modern English deal (“portion; amount”)), Middle English dale, dole (“part, portion”) (from Old English dāl (“portion”) > Modern English dole), Middle English sliver (“part, portion”) (from Middle English sliven (“to cut, cleave”), from Old English (tō)slifan (“to split”)).
Etymology 2
From Middle English parten, from Old French partir.
Etymology 3
From Middle English part, from the noun.