percent

or per cent

[ per-sent ]

See synonyms for percent on Thesaurus.com

noun

Also called per centum. one one-hundredth part; 1/100.
percentage (defs. 1, 3).

British. stocks, bonds, etc., that bear an indicated rate of interest.

adjective

figured or expressed on the basis of a rate or proportion per hundred (used in combination with a number in expressing rates of interest, proportions, etc.): to get three percent interest.Symbol: %

Origin of percent

First recorded in 1560–70; short for Medieval Latin per centum “by the hundred”; see per, cent

word story For percent

Percent is from the Latin adverbial phrase per centum meaning “by the hundred.” The Latin phrase entered English in the 16th century. Later, it was abbreviated per cent. with a final period. Eventually, the period was dropped and the two parts merged to produce the modern one-word form percent. The two-word form per cent is still used occasionally, but its use is diminishing. The percent sign ( % ) is used chiefly in scientific, tabular, or statistical material and only with numerals preceding it: 58%; a range of 30% to 40%.

confusables note For percent

In the senses “rate or proportion per hundred” and “proportion in general” percent and percentage are frequently interchangeable. With a preceding number, only percent occurs ( a 16 percent decline ); with no preceding number, either occurs, but percentage is much more common: a certain percentage (or percent ) of the land.

Other words from percent

per·cent·al, adjective

Words that may be confused with percent

percent , percentage, percentile (see confusables note at the current entry)

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use percent in a sentence

The Wall Street Journal reported that in the U.S. 44 per cent of drinkers aged between 21 and 27 had never even tried Budweiser.
Beer Countries vs. Wine Countries | Clive Irving | December 7, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
In Kentucky the bourbon distillers have had to increase their payrolls by 77 per cent in two years to meet the demand.
Beer Countries vs. Wine Countries | Clive Irving | December 7, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
And--crucially--if no one gets 50 per cent of the vote, the top two candidates face off on December 6th.
Election Day In The Big Sleazy | Jeff Greenfield | November 2, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
In 2011, Iran accounted for 80 per cent of the opium seizures in the world, and 30 percent of the heroin seizures.
As Iran’s Marijuana Trade Thrives, Is It Becoming a Nation of Stoners? | IranWire | August 10, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
The number of cases jumped by 129, or 38 per cent, in the week from June 25 to July 2, the WHO said.
"Out of Control" Ebola Outbreak in West Africa Could Have 1,500 Victims Who Don't Know They're Carriers | The Telegraph | July 8, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST

The Act permits member banks to accept an amount of bills not exceeding 50 per cent.
Readings in Money and Banking | Chester Arthur Phillips
We did not talk much about the past at dinner, except—ah me, how bitterly we regretted our 10 per cent.
Gallipoli Diary, Volume I | Ian Hamilton
The percentage of gold to the notes—the main demand liability—has, of course, fallen from about 65 to 35 per cent.
Readings in Money and Banking | Chester Arthur Phillips
At present this medium is paper money depreciated, as in the case of the Reichsbank notes, by nearly 30 per cent.
Readings in Money and Banking | Chester Arthur Phillips
The war credit bank of Greater Berlin, for instance, was established with a capital of 18 millions of marks, of which 25 per cent.
Readings in Money and Banking | Chester Arthur Phillips

British Dictionary definitions for per cent

per cent

/ (pə ˈsɛnt) /

adverb

Also: per centum in or for every hundred: Symbol: %

nounAlso: per'cent

a percentage or proportion
(often plural) securities yielding a rate of interest as specified: he bought three percents

Origin of per cent

C16: from Medieval Latin per centum out of every hundred

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 percent

percent

One part in a hundred. For example, 62 percent (also written 62%) means 62 parts out of 100.

Cultural definitions for percent

percent

A fraction expressed as a number of hundredths. Twelve percent of a quantity, for example, is twelve one-hundredths of it. Twelve percent may also be written 12%.

Browse