statistics

noun

sta·​tis·​tics stə-ˈti-stiks 

plural in form but singular or plural in construction

1

: a branch of mathematics dealing with the collection, analysis, interpretation, and presentation of masses of numerical data

2

: a collection of quantitative data

Examples of statistics in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The system combines players’ and teams’ statistics to rank players according to their productivity on the court. —Evan Frank, The Indianapolis Star, 12 Feb. 2023

Users can combine points totals, moneyline bets or many other wagers with individual statistics like yards thrown or touchdowns caught. —Ian Firstenberg, Chicago Tribune, 12 Feb. 2023

So why are productivity statistics so underwhelming? —Andy Kessler, WSJ, 12 Feb. 2023

About a dozen people at the firm worked on the report, including econometricians, who use statistics to model and predict outcomes, the people said. —Josh Dawsey, Washington Post, 11 Feb. 2023

Word History

Etymology

German Statistik study of political facts and figures, from New Latin statisticus of politics, from Latin status state

First Known Use

1770, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing statistics

• vital statistics

Rhymes for statistics

• ballistics
• heuristics
• linguistics
• logistics
• stylistics
• biostatistics
• characteristics
• psycholinguistics
• mystics
• sociolinguistics

Kids Definition

statistics

singular or plural noun

sta·​tis·​tics stə-ˈtis-tiks 

: a branch of mathematics dealing with the collection and study of numerical data

also : a collection of such numerical data

statistical

-ˈtis-ti-kəl

adjective

statistically

-ti-k(ə-)lē

adverb