multivariate

American

[muhl-ti-vair-ee-it] / ˌmʌl tɪˈvɛər i ɪt /

adjective

Statistics.

(of a combined distribution) having more than one variate or variable.

multivariate British

/ ˌmʌltɪˈvɛərɪɪt /

adjective

statistics (of a distribution) involving a number of distinct, though not usually independent, random variables

"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

multivariate Scientific

/ mŭl′tē-vâr′ē-ĭt,-āt′ /

Having or involving more than one variable.

Etymology

Origin of multivariate

First recorded in 1925–30; multi- + variate

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.

See Examples For:

multivariate

The New York Fed’s multivariate core trend model External link, which uses statistical techniques to filter out noise, measured 4% percent in April.

From Barron's ● Jun. 3, 2026

Researchers found that certain cell-type distributions align with specific networks in the brain's cortex, both at the level of individual cell types and multivariate cellular profiles, or fingerprints.

From Science Daily ● Nov. 21, 2024

Key to the experiment were algorithms called multivariate pattern decoders, which could predict which image a participant was viewing at a given time based on their brain signals.

From Science Magazine ● Jun. 25, 2023

"One course was statistical computing. I soon realised that Reep's data lent itself to the sort of multivariate analysis that could only be done on a computer."

From BBC ● Apr. 18, 2022

In reality, statisticians use multivariate data, meaning many variables.

From Textbooks ● Nov. 29, 2017

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023