percentile
UK: pəˈsɛntaɪl | US: pərˈsɛnˌtaɪl
n. a value on a scale of 100 that indicates the percentage of a distribution that is equal to or below it
n. (statistics) each of the 100 equal groups into which a population can be divided according to the distribution of values of a particular variable
percentile = per<through, by> + cent<hundred> + ile<relating to>
- per: From Latin per ("through, by"), used here to denote "for each."
- cent: From Latin centum ("hundred"), referring to division into 100 parts.
- ile: A suffix forming adjectives or nouns, often indicating relation or capability (e.g., fragile, juvenile).
Etymology Origin:
The word percentile emerged in the late 19th century, combining percent (from per centum, "by the hundred") with the suffix -ile. It reflects statistical partitioning into hundredths, mirroring the logic of percent but applied to ranked distributions. The suffix -ile generalizes the concept to measurable divisions (e.g., quartile, decile).
Her test score placed her in the 90th percentile of all examinees.
The study analyzed income distribution by percentile to assess economic inequality.
Babies weighing below the 10th percentile may require additional monitoring.
The 75th percentile of the dataset represents the upper quartile.
Engineers compared the 99th percentile of response times to optimize system performance.