median

[mee-dee-uh n] /ˈmi di ən/
adjective
1.
noting or pertaining to a plane dividing something into two equal parts, especially one dividing an animal into right and left halves.
2.
situated in or pertaining to the middle; medial.
noun
3.
Arithmetic, Statistics. the middle number in a given sequence of numbers, taken as the average of the two middle numbers when the sequence has an even number of numbers:
4 is the median of 1, 3, 4, 8, 9.
4.
Geometry. a straight line from a vertex of a triangle to the midpoint of the opposite side.
5.
Also called midpoint. a vertical line that divides a histogram into two equal parts.
Compare central tendency.
6.
median strip.
Origin
1535-45; < Latin mediānus in the middle. See medium, -an
Related forms
medianly, adverb
postmedian, adjective
premedian, noun, adjective
submedian, adjective
Can be confused
mean, median.
media, median, medium, mediums (see usage note at media)

Median

[mee-dee-uh n] /ˈmi di ən/
adjective
1.
of or pertaining to Media, the Medes, or their language.
noun
2.
a Mede.
3.
the Iranian language of ancient Media, contemporaneous with Old Persian.
Origin
1595-1605; Medi(a) + -an
British Dictionary definitions for medians

median

/ˈmiːdɪən/
adjective
1.
of, relating to, situated in, or directed towards the middle
2.
(biology) of or relating to the plane that divides an organism or organ into symmetrical parts
3.
(statistics) of or relating to the median
noun
4.
a middle point, plane, or part
5.
(geometry)
  1. a straight line joining one vertex of a triangle to the midpoint of the opposite side See also centroid
  2. a straight line joining the midpoints of the nonparallel sides of a trapezium
6.
(statistics) the middle value in a frequency distribution, below and above which lie values with equal total frequencies
7.
(statistics) the middle number or average of the two middle numbers in an ordered sequence of numbers: 7 is the median of both 1, 7, 31 and 2, 5, 9, l6
8.
(Canadian) Also called (chiefly Brit) central reservation. the strip, often covered with grass, that separates the two sides of a highway
Derived Forms
medianly, adverb
Word Origin
C16: from Latin mediānus, from medius middle
Word Origin and History for medians

median

adj.

1590s, from Middle French médian (15c.) and directly from Latin medianus "of the middle," from medius "in the middle" (see medial (adj.)). Originally anatomical, of veins, arteries, nerves. Median strip "strip between lanes of traffic" is from 1954.

n.

"a median part," 1540s, from Latin medianus (see median (adj.)). Meaning "middle number of a series" is from 1883.

medians in Medicine

median me·di·an (mē'dē-ən)
adj.

  1. Relating to, located in, or extending toward the middle.

  2. Of, relating to, or situated in or near the plane that divides a bilaterally symmetrical animal into right and left halves; mesial.

  3. Of, relating to, or constituting the middle value in a distribution.

n.

  1. A median point, plane, line, or part.

  2. The middle value in a distribution, above and below which lie an equal number of values.

medians in Science
median
(mē'dē-ən)

  1. In a sequence of numbers arranged from smallest to largest:

    1. The middle number, when such a sequence has an odd number of values. For example, in the sequence 3, 4, 14, 35, 280, the median is 14.

    2. The average of the two middle numbers, when such a sequence has an even number of values. For example, in the sequence 4, 8, 10, 56, the median is 9 (the average of 8 and 10). Compare arithmetic mean, average, mode.

  2. A line joining a vertex of a triangle to the midpoint of the opposite side.


medians in Culture

median definition


The point in a series at which half of the values or units of the series are higher and half lower.

median definition


In statistics, the middle value of a set of numbers or data points; half the figures will fall below the median and half above. (See average; compare mean and mode.)