portfolio

Noun

portfolio (plural portfolios)

1. A case for carrying papers, drawings, photographs, maps and other flat documents.
   • He opened an embroidered portfolio; and, from its perfumed depths, took out a letter, which he began to read aloud.1837, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], “Introduction”, in Ethel Churchill: Or, The Two Brides. […], volume III, London: Henry Colburn, […], →OCLC, page 142
2. (broadly) The collection of such documents, especially the works of an artist or photographer, or more generally, a presentation of an individual's work samples and skills (a career portfolio).
3. The post and the responsibilities of a cabinet minister or other head of a government department.
   • His [Jared Kushner's] portfolio extended to foreign policy, as he brokered a new North American trade agreement and negotiated peace deals in the Middle East.2025 October 29, Mohamad Bazzi, “Jared Kushner is back – and so are big questions about his financial ties”, in The Guardian, →ISSN

   Synonyms:

   ministry

4. The group of investments and other assets held by an investor.
   • Behind his [Terry Smith's] success is a simple formula: buy shares in companies that make basic necessities – from toilet paper to nappies, baby food to pet food, soap to shampoo. […] It's why his portfolio of just 20 companies includes names such as Unilever […] and Imperial Tobacco (Lambert &...2011 December 2, Patrick Collinson, “Terry Smith's investments have other fund managers on the ropes”, in The Guardian, →ISSN
   • Private-equity nabobs bristle at being dubbed mere financiers.[…]Much of their pleading is public-relations bluster. Clever financial ploys are what have made billionaires of the industry’s veterans. “Operational improvement” in a portfolio company has often meant little more than promising...2013 June 22, “Engineers of a different kind”, in The Economist, volume 407, number 8841, page 70
5. A collection of assets; (figurative) any collection of things considered as investments or assets, (rarely) also liabilities.
   • I would like to introduce you to our portfolio of services.
   • In the past, thoughts were too real to be kept like a cultural portfolio of stocks and bonds. But now we have mental assets.1976 September, Saul Bellow, Humboldt’s Gift, New York, N.Y.: Avon Books, →ISBN, page 378
6. A range of products.
   • product portfolio