quartile

- 4 dictionary results

quar⋅tile

[kwawr-tahyl, -til]

–noun

1.	Statistics. (in a frequency distribution) one of the values of a variable that divides the distribution of the variable into four groups having equal frequencies. Compare first quartile, median, third quartile.

2.	Astrology. a quartile aspect.

–adjective

3.	Astrology. of or pertaining to the aspect of two heavenly bodies when their longitudes differ by 90°.

Origin:
1500–10; < ML quartīlis, equiv. to L quart(us) fourth + -īlis -ile

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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Link To quartile

quar·tile (kwôr'tīl', -tĭl)

n. The value of the boundary at the 25th, 50th, or 75th percentiles of a frequency distribution divided into four parts, each containing a quarter of the population.

[Middle English, 90 degrees apart (of the relative position of two celestial bodies), from Old French quartil, from Medieval Latin quārtīlis, of a quartile, from Latin quārtus, fourth; see quart.]

Word Origin & History

quartile

1450, from M.Fr. quartil, from M.L. quartilus "of a quartile," from L. quartus "fourth."

Financial Dictionary

Quartile

A statistical term describing a division of observations into four defined intervals based upon the values of the data and how they compare to the entire set of observations.

Investopedia Commentary

Each quartile contains 25% of the total observations. Generally, the data is ordered from smallest to largest with those observations falling below 25% of all the data analyzed allocated within the 1st quartile, observations falling between 25.1% and 50% and allocated in the 2nd quartile, then the observations falling between 51% and 75% allocated in the 3rd quartile, and finally the remaining observations allocated in the 4th quartile.

Try not to confuse a quarter with a quartile.