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

Snow levels in the Upper Black River last winter were well below average, amounting to less than the 20th percentile among the past 30 years. —Shi En Kim, AZCentral.com, 31 Mar. 2026

Some credit is owed to Blue Jays catcher Alejandro Kirk, who ranked in the 98th percentile of framing last season. —Johnny Flores Jr, New York Times, 30 Mar. 2026

ChatGPT 4 can pass the bar exam (in the upper percentile of the class). —Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 26 Mar. 2026

According to Statcast, McCarthy ranks in the 99th percentile in sprint speed in the majors. —Patrick Saunders, Denver Post, 25 Mar. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1885, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for percentile

• campanile
• chrysotile
• domicil
• domicile
• mercantile
• neuropil
• nonpareil
• peristyle
• reconcile
• thermopile
• aisle
• bile

Medical 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