correlation

American  

[kawr-uh-ley-shuhn, kor-] / ˌkɔr əˈleɪ ʃən, ˌkɒr- /

especially British, corelation

noun

1. mutual relation of two or more things, parts, etc..

   Studies find a positive correlation between severity of illness and nutritional status of the patients.

   Synonyms:

   interconnection, interrelationship, interdependence, equivalence, parallelism, correspondence, similarity

2. the act of correlating or state of being correlated.

3. Statistics. the degree to which two or more attributes or measurements on the same group of elements show a tendency to vary together.

4. Physiology. the interdependence or reciprocal relations of organs or functions.

5. Geology. the demonstrable equivalence, in age or lithology, of two or more stratigraphic units, as formations or members of such.

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correlation British  

/ ˌkɒrɪˈleɪʃən /

noun

1. a mutual or reciprocal relationship between two or more things

2. the act or process of correlating or the state of being correlated

3. statistics the extent of correspondence between the ordering of two variables. Correlation is positive or direct when two variables move in the same direction and negative or inverse when they move in opposite directions

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Pop Culture

—Pearson correlation coefficient: a value between -1 and +1 that represents the relationship between two variables.

Other Word Forms

• correlational adjective
• intercorrelation noun
• miscorrelation noun
• noncorrelation noun

Etymology

Origin of correlation

First recorded in 1555–65; from Medieval Latin: correlātiōn- (stem of correlātiō ); cor-, relation

Example Sentences

However, the researchers note that the findings show a correlation, not cause and effect, and that factors like motivation or self-discipline may also influence outcomes.

From Science Daily • Mar. 30, 2026

Ongoing studies at the Shark Lab suggest that there might actually be a correlation between the high number of people in the ocean and the relatively low number of shark bites.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 26, 2026

Taking a step back: The price of gold tracked U.S. real yields for the 15-year stretch before 2022, with an 87% correlation, Baker said.

From Barron's • Mar. 23, 2026

Far from exhibiting a steady uptrend over the 15 years prior to 2019, the correlation fluctuated widely.

From MarketWatch • Mar. 21, 2026

A well-known example involves the moderate correlation between milk consumption and the incidence of cancer in various societies.

From "Innumeracy: Mathematical Illiteracy and Its Consequences" by John Allen Paulos

Related Words

• interaction
• interrelationship
• parallel