fractional

/ˈfrækʃənl/ (bre, ipa) · /ˈfrækʃənl/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈfrak-sh(ə-)nəl/ (ame, mw)

fractional — adjective

  • fractionalpositive
  • more fractionalcomparative
  • most fractionalsuperlative

1. so tiny in amount, size, or degree that it barely counts — a slice you could mis

1.形容詞C1
釋義

so tiny in amount, size, or degree that it barely counts — a slice you could miss without measuring carefully.

例句

The new battery lasted only a fractional amount longer than the old one.

fractional + amount (attributive use before a quantity noun)

Amihan won the race by a fractional margin of two hundredths of a second.

collocation: fractional margin (in competitive or measurement contexts)

同義詞
  • tiny

    more everyday and less formal than 'fractional'

  • minute

    stronger emphasis on something almost invisible; very formal

  • negligible

    stresses that the amount is too small to matter

  • marginal

    highlights the gap or edge rather than the absolute size

反義詞

文法句型

fractional + noun

用法筆記

Almost always attributive (placed before a noun). Common with quantity nouns: amount, margin, percentage, pause, difference. Avoid using after 'be' — '*the change was fractional' sounds awkward; prefer 'there was a fractional change'.

常見錯誤

❌The difference was fractional and nobody cared.
✅There was only a fractional difference, and nobody cared.
💡'fractional' is uncomfortable after 'be'; use it before the noun.
❌a fractional of the price
✅a fraction of the price
💡the noun form is 'fraction'; 'fractional' is the adjective.

2. made up of only a piece of something, not the whole thing — for example, owning

2.形容詞C1
釋義

made up of only a piece of something, not the whole thing — for example, owning one tenth of a share or one room of a holiday home together with other buyers.

例句

The app lets users buy fractional shares of expensive companies for as little as one dollar.

collocation: fractional shares (finance)

Mert and three friends purchased fractional ownership of a beach house in Antalya.

collocation: fractional ownership (property)

同義詞
  • partial

    broader; any incomplete part, not necessarily a structured split

  • shared

    stresses joint ownership but loses the 'one-piece-of-a-whole' meaning

反義詞
  • whole

    the entire unit, not divided

  • full

    complete ownership of the asset

文法句型

fractional + noun (ownership / unit term)

用法筆記

Distinguish from sense 1 (VERY SMALL): this sense names a structural split (one part of a whole), not the size of a change. Common in finance and property contexts — fractional share, fractional ownership, fractional interest.

常見錯誤

❌I own fractional of the company.
✅I own a fractional share of the company.
💡'fractional' must sit before a noun like 'share' or 'interest'.