I. ˈpärshəl, ˈpȧsh- adjective
Etymology: Middle English parcial, from Middle French partial biased, incomplete, from Medieval Latin partialis, from Late Latin, incomplete, from Latin part-, pars part + -ialis -ial — more at part
1. : inclined to favor one party in a cause or one side of a question more than the other : biased , predisposed
loss of the impartiality of the scientific spirit through affiliation with some partisan and partial interest — John Dewey
the partial testimony of friends — H.D.Thoreau
it is inconsistent with justice to be partial — J.S.Mill
2.
a.
(1) : having a predilection for a certain person or thing : favorably disposed toward someone or something : biased or prejudiced in one's favor
(2) : inclined to favor a certain person or thing excessively : having an unreasonable fondness for something : foolishly fond
the partial father, loving one alone — F.W.Robertson
b. : having a liking for : fond of — used with to
the horse is particularly partial to salt — Henry Wynmalen
a walk … was a marvelous idea for them partial to it — Richard Llewellyn
3. : of, involving, or affecting a part rather than the whole of something : not total or entire : not general or universal : existing to a limited extent only : incomplete
the partial transfer of sovereignty … to a supranational authority — Current Biography
among partial men, he stood for the complete man — Van Wyck Brooks
provides only a partial solution to the housing problem — D.D.Eisenhower
partial paralysis
II. noun
( -s )
1. : one of the tones produced by the complex vibrations comprising a musical tone and extending in range from the fundamental upward through the entire overtone series — compare harmonic 1
2. : partial score
3. : partial denture