as in approximately
close to but not exactly
I have plus or minus five dollars in change
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Recent Examples of plus or minus
The margin of error was plus or minus 3%, with a 95% confidence interval.
—
Emily Dreibelbis, PCMAG, 9 Feb. 2023
The Post-ABC poll was conducted Jan. 27 through Feb. 1, 2023, among a random national sample of 1,003 adults and has a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points among the full sample and a larger error margin among subgroups.
—Scott Clement, BostonGlobe.com, 6 Feb. 2023
The Post-ABC poll was conducted Jan. 27 through Feb. 1, 2023, among a random national sample of 1,003 adults and has a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points among the full sample and a larger error margin among subgroups.
—Scott Clement, Washington Post, 3 Feb. 2023
For the third quarter, the company guided for revenue of $2 billion, plus or minus $150 million.
—Kathryn Hardison, WSJ, 26 Jan. 2023
See All Example Sentences for plus or minus
Emily Dreibelbis, PCMAG, 9 Feb. 2023
The Post-ABC poll was conducted Jan. 27 through Feb. 1, 2023, among a random national sample of 1,003 adults and has a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points among the full sample and a larger error margin among subgroups.
—Scott Clement, BostonGlobe.com, 6 Feb. 2023
The Post-ABC poll was conducted Jan. 27 through Feb. 1, 2023, among a random national sample of 1,003 adults and has a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points among the full sample and a larger error margin among subgroups.
—Scott Clement, Washington Post, 3 Feb. 2023
For the third quarter, the company guided for revenue of $2 billion, plus or minus $150 million.
—Kathryn Hardison, WSJ, 26 Jan. 2023
See All Example Sentences for plus or minus
Recent Examples of Synonyms for plus or minus
Adverb
-
Vita knows approximately 80 percent of the words.—
Jason P. Frank,
Vulture,
11 Apr. 2026
-
Anyma, the Italian American DJ who makes up one-half of the EDM duo Tale of Us, was set to perform on the main stage at midnight, approximately 90 minutes after Sabrina Carpenter’s headlining set.—
Ethan Shanfeld,
Variety,
11 Apr. 2026
Adverb
-
Two days later, she was found dead near a river about nine miles from her home.—
Samantha Stutsman,
PEOPLE,
18 Apr. 2026
-
Property owners are given about three months’ notice and paid compensation at rates set by the municipality.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
18 Apr. 2026
Adverb
-
The entire drone program costs about $300,000, including roughly $30,000 for the drone itself.—
Bo Evans,
CBS News,
18 Apr. 2026
-
The strait is a major thoroughfare for roughly one-third of seaborne trade in fertilizer, according to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTD).—
Kelly McCarthy,
ABC News,
18 Apr. 2026
Adverb
-
Security video captured the puppy wandering around outside for about an hour before staff found her.—
Michele Gile,
CBS News,
14 Apr. 2026
-
However, this time around, Harry, 41, and Meghan, 44, opted to fly business class on Qantas, surprising some of their fellow fliers on the flight from Los Angeles to Melbourne.—
Helen Murphy,
PEOPLE,
14 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Plus or minus.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/plus%20or%20minus. Accessed 20 Apr. 2026.
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