arithmetic mean

American  

noun

Statistics.

1. the mean obtained by adding several quantities together and dividing the sum by the number of quantities.

   the arithmetic mean of 1, 5, 2, and 8 is 4.

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arithmetic mean British  

noun

1. Often shortened to: mean.  Also called: average.  an average value of a set of integers, terms, or quantities, expressed as their sum divided by their number Compare geometric mean

   the arithmetic mean of 3, 4, and 8 is 5

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arithmetic mean Scientific  

/ ăr′ĭth-mĕt′ĭk /

1. The value obtained by dividing the sum of a set of quantities by the number of quantities in the set. For example, if there are three test scores 70, 83, and 90, the arithmetic mean of the scores is their sum (243) divided by the number of scores (3), or 81.

2. See more at mean Compare average median mode

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Etymology

Origin of arithmetic mean

First recorded in 1790–1800

Example Sentences

In the case of the arithmetic mean this is solved by finding the value from which all points are equal linear distances.

From Textbooks • Nov. 29, 2017

The arithmetic mean of these three numbers is 23.6 percent.

From Textbooks • Nov. 29, 2017

Formally the arithmetic mean is known as the first moment of the distribution.

From Textbooks • Nov. 29, 2017

The reason for this difference, 16 versus 23.6, is that the arithmetic mean is additive and thus does not account for the interest on the interest, compound interest, embedded in the investment growth process.

From Textbooks • Nov. 29, 2017

In the construction of such an index number the use of the arithmetic mean is not imperative.

From Readings in Money and Banking Selected and Adapted by Phillips, Chester Arthur