null hypothesis

American

noun

(in the statistical testing of a hypothesis) the hypothesis to be tested.

null hypothesis British

noun

statistics the residual hypothesis if the alternative hypothesis tested against it fails to achieve a predetermined significance level Compare hypothesis testing alternative hypothesis

"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

Etymology

Origin of null hypothesis

First recorded in 1930–35

Compare meaning

How does null-hypothesis compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

null hypothesis vs. alternative hypothesis

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.

H0: μ1 = μ2 Null hypothesis: The means of the final exam scores are equal for the online and face-to- face statistics classes.

From Textbooks • Mar. 27, 2020

H0: μ1 = μ2 Null hypothesis: the means of the final exam scores are equal for the online and face-to- face statistics classes.

From Textbooks • Sep. 19, 2013

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