percentile
noun
per·cen·tile
pər-ˈsen-ˌtī(-ə)l 
: a value on a scale of 100 that indicates the percent of a distribution that is equal to or below it
a score in the 95th percentile
Examples of percentile in a Sentence
His height and weight are in the 80th percentile for boys his age.
Recent Examples on the Web
My 5-year-old son is in the negative percentile and had everything tested except growth hormone.
—
Lucy Notarantonio, MSNBC Newsweek, 8 Nov. 2025
At the end of the 2024-25 school year, 58% of students scored at or above the 50th percentile on early literacy screenings.
—Alec Johnson, jsonline.com, 6 Nov. 2025
Crow-Armstrong’s fielding range, according to Statcast, placed him in the 100th percentile of major-league defenders.
—Patrick Mooney, New York Times, 3 Nov. 2025
According to Cleaning the Glass, just 26% of Adebayo’s shot attempts this season have come at the rim (26th percentile among NBA bigs) while 36% of his shots this season have come from three-point range (78th percentile among NBA bigs).
—Anthony Chiang, Miami Herald, 31 Oct. 2025
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Lucy Notarantonio, MSNBC Newsweek, 8 Nov. 2025
At the end of the 2024-25 school year, 58% of students scored at or above the 50th percentile on early literacy screenings.
—Alec Johnson, jsonline.com, 6 Nov. 2025
Crow-Armstrong’s fielding range, according to Statcast, placed him in the 100th percentile of major-league defenders.
—Patrick Mooney, New York Times, 3 Nov. 2025
According to Cleaning the Glass, just 26% of Adebayo’s shot attempts this season have come at the rim (26th percentile among NBA bigs) while 36% of his shots this season have come from three-point range (78th percentile among NBA bigs).
—Anthony Chiang, Miami Herald, 31 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for percentile
Cite this Entry
“Percentile.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/percentile. Accessed 19 Nov. 2025.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
percentile
noun
per·cen·tile
pər-ˈsen-ˌtīl
: a value on a scale of one hundred that indicates the percent of a distribution that is equal to or below it
a percentile score of 95 is a score equal to or better than 95 percent of the scores
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