statistical significance

Cultural  

1. In statistics, a number that expresses the probability that the result of a given experiment or study could have occurred purely by chance. This number can be a margin of error (“The results of this public opinion poll are accurate to five percent”), or it can indicate a confidence level (“If this experiment were repeated, there is a probability of ninety-five percent that our conclusions would be substantiated”).

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Example Sentences

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statistical significance

The findings have been rated 2.6 sigma, which is the system that marks the statistical significance of discoveries.

From BBC ● Sep. 2, 2026

However, that result did not reach statistical significance, which the researchers said could reflect the smaller number of prostate cancer cases within that group.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 27, 2026

Given the wide variability of individual IPOs’ returns in the first six months, it’s unclear how much statistical significance there is for the difference in the two groups’ average returns.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 16, 2026

Although a high-dose combination of fianlimab and Libtayo showed improvement over Keytruda, the result didn’t reach statistical significance, Meacham noted.

From Barron's ● May 18, 2026

Usually we encounter the opposite situation: the result is of potential practical significance but of almost no statistical significance.

From "Innumeracy: Mathematical Illiteracy and Its Consequences" by John Allen Paulos