Meanings
comparative more portionless · superlative most portionless
- Lacking a portion; especially, without a dowry.
‘So my child is portionless,’ resumed the earl, with a suppressed sigh.
1860, Ellen Wood, East Lynne, Penguin, published 2005, page 101 more example
‘Be assured, if the youth were true, his father who is one of the proudest nobles about the court, would prohibit his union with one so humble and portionless as thou.’
1852, Washington Irving, Tales from the Alhambra
Origin
- Latinportiō
- Old Frenchporcion
- Middle Englishporcioun
- Englishportion
- Proto-Indo-European*lewh₁-
- Proto-Indo-European*lewHs-
- Proto-Germanic*leusaną
- Proto-Germanic*lausaz
- Englishportionless
Cite this entry
portionless. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/portionless
“portionless.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/portionless. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “portionless,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/portionless.
Source: portionless on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.