median

1 of 2

noun

me·​di·​an ˈmē-dē-ən How to pronounce median (audio)
1
: a medial (see medial sense 2b) part (such as a vein or nerve)
2
a
: a value in an ordered set of values below and above which there is an equal number of values or which is the arithmetic mean of the two middle values if there is no one middle number
b
: a vertical line that divides the histogram of a frequency distribution into two parts of equal area
c
: a value of a random variable for which all greater values make the cumulative distribution function greater than one half and all lesser values make it less than one half
3
a
: a line from a vertex (see vertex sense 2) of a triangle to the midpoint of the opposite side
b
: a line joining the midpoints of the nonparallel sides of a trapezoid (see trapezoid sense 1a)
4

median

2 of 2

adjective

1
: being in the middle or in an intermediate position : medial
2
: lying in the plane dividing a bilateral animal into right and left halves
3
: relating to or constituting a statistical median
4
: produced without occlusion along the lengthwise middle line of the tongue
medianly adverb

Did you know?

People often use the word average without realizing that there are two common forms of average. Suppose you want to find the average net worth of a group of people—that is, the average value of everything they possess. To find one type of average, called the mean, you'd simply add up the total value of money and property of everyone in the group and divide it by the number of people. To find the other type, called the median, you'd identify the net worth of the person who is richer than half the people and poorer than the other half. So if Warren Buffett drove through a tiny village in India, the mean net worth of those in the village would suddenly rise to perhaps a billion dollars, but their median net worth would remain close to zero. Which figure would be more meaningful?

Choose the Right Synonym for median

average, mean, median, norm mean something that represents a middle point.

average is the quotient obtained by dividing the sum total of a set of figures by the number of figures.

scored an average of 85 on tests

mean may be the simple average or it may represent value midway between two extremes.

a high of 70° and a low of 50° give a mean of 60°

median applies to the value that represents the point at which there are as many instances above as there are below.

average of a group of persons earning 3, 4, 5, 8, and 10 dollars an hour is 6 dollars, whereas the median is 5 dollars

norm means the average of performance of a significantly large group, class, or grade.

scores about the norm for fifth grade arithmetic

Examples of median in a Sentence

Adjective What is the median price of homes in this area? the median price of a home in the area
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
Proportionately representative movies also earned a median of $114.2 million worldwide, the second highest median box office take behind only movies whose casts were 31 to 40 percent BIPOC ($119.8 million). Rebecca Sun, The Hollywood Reporter, 7 Mar. 2024 Investigators received a report around 6 a.m. of a man down in the center median on state Route 163 north of Interstate 5, Officer Salvador Castro said in a news release. Caleb Lunetta, San Diego Union-Tribune, 29 Feb. 2024 The median comparably sized Austin-area home lists for over $800,000, but these units are currently priced between $469,990 and $578,990. Jim Morrison, Smithsonian Magazine, 23 Feb. 2024 Adjusted for inflation, stadium subsidies have risen to a median of about $500 million from a 2010 median of $350 million, Bradbury said. Tribune News Service, The Mercury News, 23 Feb. 2024 The full rankings reveal mostly wealthy and middle-class areas with a median household income of about $98,000 (about double the national median). Michael Kolomatsky, New York Times, 22 Feb. 2024 The Biden administration’s new progress report on the process for arbitrating disagreements between insurance companies and providers shows that in over 80% of payment disputes, the arbiter settled on an amount that was more than the median in-network rate for that service, Tara Bannow reports. Sarah Owermohle, STAT, 20 Feb. 2024 In the fourth quarter, just 23.9% of homes sold in metro Denver were affordable to families earning the area median income, according to the Housing Opportunity Index published by the National Association of Home Builders and Wells Fargo. Aldo Svaldi, The Denver Post, 15 Feb. 2024 The collision caused the Accord’s driver to spin out and hit a tree in the median. Harriet Ramos, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 15 Feb. 2024
Adjective
The median home price in Surprise is $445,000, according to Realtor.com. Catherine Reagor, The Arizona Republic, 9 Mar. 2024 This provided a general estimate of the average car owner’s tax rate, rather than calculating the true median rate that residents are charged. Natalie Wallington, Kansas City Star, 8 Mar. 2024 This article is a collaboration between G/O Media Studios and PwC. The survey’s 2,006 respondents were director level or higher at companies with median revenues of US$650 million. Mohamed Kande and Lang Davidson Of Pwc, Quartz, 8 Mar. 2024 The median single family home sales price in California was $822,200 in November, said the California Association of Realtors. David Lightman, Sacramento Bee, 8 Mar. 2024 This would be a one-year tax credit to middle-class families who sell a home priced below the area’s median home price to someone who will live in the home. Bryan Mena, CNN, 8 Mar. 2024 The median price of a house in Hendricks County is $303,490. Marina Johnson, The Indianapolis Star, 8 Mar. 2024 The one-year tax credit for current homeowners would be available to people who own starter homes, defined as homes below the median home price in their county. Aimee Picchi, CBS News, 8 Mar. 2024 That would have the same effect as lowering a buyer’s mortgage rate by more than 1.5 percentage points for two years on the median home, according to the White House. Evan Halper, Washington Post, 8 Mar. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'median.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English mediane, from Late Latin mediana (vena) median (vein), from feminine of Latin medianus in the middle, central, from medius middle — more at mid

Adjective

Latin medianus — see median entry 1

First Known Use

Noun

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adjective

1592, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of median was in the 15th century

Dictionary Entries Near median

Cite this Entry

“Median.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/median. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

median

1 of 2 noun
me·​di·​an ˈmēd-ē-ən How to pronounce median (audio)
1
: a value in a series arranged from smallest to largest below and above which there are an equal number of values or which is the average of the two middle values if there is no one middle value
the median of the set 1, 3, 7, 12, 19 is 7 and the median of the set 2, 5, 7, 15 is 6
2
: a line drawn from the vertex of a triangle to the midpoint of the opposite side

median

2 of 2 adjective
1
: being in the middle or in an intermediate position
2
: relating to or making up a median
Etymology

Noun

from Latin mediana vena "median vein (a large vein in the arm)," from earlier Latin medianus "being in the middle," from medius "middle" — related to intermediate, mean entry 3, meridian

Medical Definition

median

1 of 2 noun
me·​di·​an ˈmēd-ē-ən How to pronounce median (audio)
1
: a medial part (as a vein or nerve)
2
a
: a value in an ordered set of values below and above which there is an equal number of values or which is the arithmetic mean of the two middle values if there is no one middle number
b
: a vertical line that divides the histogram of a frequency distribution into two parts of equal area

median

2 of 2 adjective
: situated in the middle
specifically : lying in a plane dividing a bilateral animal into right and left halves

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