percentile

[per-sen-tahyl, -til]

noun

1. one of the values of a variable that divides the distribution of the variable into 100 groups having equal frequencies.

   Ninety percent of the values lie at or below the ninetieth percentile, ten percent above it.

adjective

1. of or relating to a percentile or a division of a distribution by percentiles.

percentile

/ pəˈsɛntaɪl /

noun

1. Also called: centile. one of 99 actual or notional values of a variable dividing its distribution into 100 groups with equal frequencies; the 90th percentile is the value of a variable such that 90% of the relevant population is below that value

percentile

1. Any of the 100 equal parts into which the range of the values of a set of data can be divided in order to show the distribution of those values. The percentile of a given value is determined by the percentage of the values that are smaller than that value. For example, a test score that is higher than 95 percent of the other scores is in the 95th percentile.

Word History and Origins

Origin of percentile¹

First recorded in 1880–85; percent + -ile

Example Sentences

It’s also not that great historically — the 27th percentile of returns since 1990.

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The subprime market tapped a segment of the American public that did not typically have anything to do with Wall Street: the tranche between the fifth and the twenty-ninth percentile in their credit ratings.

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He started at a low percentile in his early 20s and has climbed up the chart over time.

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Students improved their rankings on standardized tests by 1.1 percentile points overall between the spring before the ban took effect and the spring two years later.

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Investors’ allocation to US stocks is in the 96th percentile over the last decade, indicating high exposure and potential for a pullback.

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