probability

(prob″ă-bil′ĭt-ē )

To hear audio pronunciation of this topic, purchase a subscription or log in.

[L. probabilitas, likelihood]

1. Likelihood.
2. The ratio that expresses the possibility of the occurrence of a specific event. The probability of a tossed coin landing heads or tails is one half or 50% each. This 50% probability remains the same every time a coin is tossed. Probability ratios based on sophisticated techniques are used for estimating the chance of occurrence of diseases in a population and in projecting vital statistics such as birth and death rates.

There's more to see -- the rest of this topic is available only to subscribers.