histogram

American  

[his-tuh-gram] / ˈhɪs təˌgræm /

noun

Statistics.

1. a graph of a frequency distribution in which rectangles with bases on the horizontal axis are given widths equal to the class intervals and heights equal to the corresponding frequencies.

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histogram British  

/ ˈhɪstəˌɡræm /

noun

1. a statistical graph that represents the frequency of values of a quantity by vertical rectangles of varying heights and widths. The width of the rectangles is in proportion to the class interval under consideration, and their areas represent the relative frequency of the phenomenon in question See also stem-and-leaf diagram

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Etymology

Origin of histogram

First recorded in 1890–95; histo- + -gram ¹

Explanation

Histogram is a fancy word for "bar graph." If you use the word histogram to describe a chart that uses bars or rectangles to display how often something happens, your math teacher will be impressed. The benefit of a histogram is that instead of a list of numbers, you can see information graphed on a bar chart, which makes it much more easy to understand. The word comes from the Greek root histos which means both "the mast of a ship" and "anything set upright," like the bars on a histogram.

Example Sentences

Draw a histogram of body sizes with two plot lines, one showing the former population and another showing the new population that indicates how this population will likely evolve.

From Textbooks • Jun. 9, 2022

The histogram for the data: 4, 5, 6, 6, 6, 7, 7, 7, 7, 8 is not symmetrical.

From Textbooks • Mar. 27, 2020

Using either a graphing calculator or computer or by hand, use the frequency column to construct a histogram for each publisher's survey.

From Textbooks • Mar. 27, 2020

In complete sentences, describe the shape of the histogram.

From Textbooks • Mar. 27, 2020

Then use the word-frequency histogram in the candidate message to calculate the probability that it belongs in the "spam" pile or the "ham" pile.

From Little Brother by Doctorow, Cory