mean deviation
noun Statistics.
a measure of dispersion, computed by taking the arithmetic mean of the absolute values of the deviations of the functional values from some central value, usually the mean or median.
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Also called average deviation.
Origin of mean deviation
First recorded in 1890–95
Words nearby mean deviation
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020
British Dictionary definitions for mean deviation
mean deviation
noun statistics
the difference between an observed value of a variable and its mean
Also: mean deviation from the mean, mean deviation from the median, average deviation a measure of dispersion derived by computing the mean of the absolute values of the differences between observed values of a variable and the variable's mean
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Scientific definitions for mean deviation
mean deviation
In a statistical distribution, the average of the absolute values of the differences between individual numbers and their mean.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.