statistical
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of statistical
First recorded in 1590–1600; statistic(s) + -al 1
Explanation
If you can say it with numbers, then it is probably statistical. Statistical information (or "stats") can tell the chance of rain tomorrow or what percentage or your allowance gets spent on texting. Statistics is the science of gathering numerical information in large amounts and using it to make broad deductions — such as the one that famously declared the average British family in the 1980s had 2.4 children. Of course, that was nonsense, and the statisticians later amended it — to 1.6. Statistical answers, as the previous example shows, often need to be taken with a pinch of salt.
Vocabulary lists containing statistical
Nothing But the Truth
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How It Went Down
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
"The result of the June 7 presidential election has led us to a statistical tie."
From Barron's • Jun. 9, 2026
Putting has often been her weak link, but she gained more than three shots on the greens compared with the rest of the field and topped the statistical charts for scrambling.
From BBC • Jun. 8, 2026
None of the factors that that are widely assumed to be correlated with gold rests on a strong statistical foundation.
From MarketWatch • Jun. 8, 2026
Pratt’s solutions may be moon shots untethered to statistical reality.
From Slate • Jun. 3, 2026
Janny Scott took as her map the newfound statistical evidence showing that the upper middle class lived longer and healthier lives than the middle class, which in turn did better than the working class.
From "Class Matters" by The New York Times
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
