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normal distribution

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noun Statistics.
a theoretical frequency distribution represented by a normal curve.
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Also called Gaussian distribution.

Origin of normal distribution

First recorded in 1895–1900
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use normal distribution in a sentence

  • A normal distribution would resemble a bell curve with a peak around three and a rapidly tapering tail in both directions, meaning the probability of an extreme event declines exponentially as the number of infections moves farther from the average.

    Slowing the spread|Katie McLean|December 18, 2020|MIT Technology Review
  • The frequency distribution of breeding activity in birds is described by a nonlinear curve (a normal distribution is nonlinear).

    The Breeding Birds of Kansas|Richard F. Johnston
  • Such boon-work was considered as a kind of surplus demand; it exceeded the normal distribution of work.

    Villainage in England|Paul Vinogradoff
  • The idea is but the shadow of the theories of normal distribution mentioned in preceding chapters.

British Dictionary definitions for normal distribution

normal distribution

noun
statistics a continuous distribution of a random variable with its mean, median, and mode equal, the probability density function of which is given by (exp- [(x –μ)²/2σ²]/σ√(2π)) where μ is the mean and σ² the varianceAlso called: Gaussian distribution
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 normal distribution

normal distribution
[ nôr′məl ]

A theoretical frequency distribution for a set of variable data, usually represented by a bell-shaped curve symmetrical about the mean.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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