norm

/nɔrm/

/nɔm/

Other forms: norms

A statistical average is called the norm. If you live in a town made up mostly of farmers but your trade is basket weaving, then you're outside the norm.

The noun norm is from the Latin word norma, which was a carpenter's square or pattern used in construction to make regular corners. Now we use norm for anything that sets a standard. You can score within the norm on a standardized test, score above the norm on an IQ test, or fall below the norm in acceptable standards of dress if you wear a halter top and cut-off jeans to a formal ball.

Definitions of norm

1. noun

   a standard or model or pattern regarded as typical
   “the current middle-class norm of two children per family”

   type of:

   criterion, measure, standard, touchstone

   a basis for comparison; a reference point against which other things can be evaluated
2. noun

   a statistic describing the location of a distribution
   “it set the norm for American homes”

   synonyms: average

   types:

   age norm

   the average age at which particular performances are expected to appear

   modal value, mode

   the most frequent value of a random variable

   median, median value

   the value below which 50% of the cases fall

   mean, mean value

   an average of n numbers computed by adding some function of the numbers and dividing by some function of n

   arithmetic mean, expectation, expected value, first moment

   the sum of the values of a random variable divided by the number of values

   geometric mean

   the mean of n numbers expressed as the n-th root of their product

   harmonic mean

   the mean of n numbers expressed as the reciprocal of the arithmetic mean of the reciprocals of the numbers

   type of:

   statistic

   a datum that can be represented numerically