t distribution

noun

: a probability density function that is used especially in testing hypotheses concerning means of normal distributions whose standard deviations are unknown and that is the distribution of a random variable {latex}t = \frac{u\sqrt{n}}{v}{/latex} where u and v are themselves independent random variables and u has a normal distribution with mean 0 and a standard deviation of 1 and v² has a chi-square distribution with n degrees of freedom

called also student's t distribution

Examples of t distribution in a Sentence

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Now known as t distributions, these plots resemble the normal distribution in that they’re bell-shaped, but the curves of the bell don’t drop off as sharply. —

Jack Murtagh, Scientific American, 25 May 2024

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1957, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler

The first known use of t distribution was circa 1957

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“T distribution.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/t%20distribution. Accessed 28 Nov. 2024.

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