percent
or per cent
[ per-sent ]
/ pərˈsɛnt /
noun
Also called per centum. one one-hundredth part; 1/100.
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: %
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historical usage of 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%.
words often confused with 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, adjectiveWORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH percent
percent , percentage, percentile (see confusables note at the current entry)Words nearby percent
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021
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British Dictionary definitions for percent
per cent
/ (pə ˈsɛnt) /
adverb
Also: per centum in or for every hundredSymbol: %
noun Also: per'cent
a percentage or proportion
(often plural) securities yielding a rate of interest as specifiedhe bought three percents
Word Origin for 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.
The American Heritage® Science Dictionary
Copyright © 2011. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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%.
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.