variance
UK /ˈvɛə.ɹi.əns/ · US /ˈvæɹ.i.əns/ noun
Forms variances variaunce var
- noun The act of varying or the state of being variable.
- noun A difference between what is expected and what is observed; deviation.
- noun The state of differing or being in conflict.
- noun An official permit to do something that is ordinarily forbidden by regulations.
- noun (law) A discrepancy between two legal documents.
- noun (law) A departure from a cause of action originally in a complaint.
- noun (statistics) The second central moment in probability; the square of the standard deviation.
- noun (physics, chemistry, biology) The number of degrees of freedom in a system.
Synonyms
discrepancy variant division disagreement divergence variability variableness variation
Etymology
From Middle English variance, variaunce, equivalent to vary + -ance, from Old French variance or directly from Anglo-Latin variaunce, veriaunce, wariaunce; all from Latin variantia.
Webster’s 1913
- noun The quality or state of being variant; change of condition; variation.
- noun Difference that produce dispute or controversy; disagreement; dissension; discord; dispute; quarrel.
Etymology [L. variantia.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “variance”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details