variance

English

Alternative forms

• variaunce (obsolete)
• var (abbreviation)

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.

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˈvɛː.ɹi.əns/
• (US, without the Mary–marry–merry merger) IPA^(key): /ˈvæɹ.i.əns/
• (US, Mary–marry–merry merger) IPA^(key): /ˈvɛɹ.i.əns/

  • Audio (US):

    (file)

• (General Australian) IPA^(key): /ˈveː.ɹi.əns/

Noun

variance (countable and uncountable, plural variances)

1. The act of varying or the state of being variable.
2. A difference between what is expected and what is observed; deviation.
   • 1973, United States Army Aviation Digest - Volume 19, page 18:

     Certain other factors were considered to explain the variance from expected figures. All seven aviators smoked. Each considered himself to be in good physical condition, though none found the time to exercise regularly. No aviator was obese.

   • 2004, F. L. Harrison, Dennis Lock, Advanced Project Management: A Structured Approach, page 212:

     This remains an important tool and relies on simple subtraction to evaluate the difference ( variance ) between a planned result and an actual measurement.

   • 2012, Penny Howard, Becky Whittaker (nee Chady), Karen Holland, Placement Learning in Cancer & Palliative Care Nursing, page 160:

     Whenever a patient is recorded as having a variance (V), it is important to return soon afterwards to see if the care intervention has helped.

3. The state of differing or being in conflict.
   • 1837, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], “Chapter XXVII. Lady Marchmont to Sir Jasper Meredith.”, in Ethel Churchill: Or, The Two Brides. […], volume I, London: Henry Colburn, […], →OCLC, page 246:

     But here, again, is the old variance between nature and fortune: each seems to delight in marring the work of the other.

4. An official permit to do something that is ordinarily forbidden by regulations.
5. (law) A discrepancy between two legal documents.
6. (law) A departure from a cause of action originally in a complaint.
8. (statistics) The second central moment in probability.
9. (physics, chemistry, biology) The number of degrees of freedom in a system.
10. (computing, programming) Covariance and contravariance generally.

    Depending on the variance of the type constructor, the subtyping relation of the simple types may be either preserved, reversed, or ignored for the respective complex types.

Derived terms

• analysis of variance
• at variance
• covariance
• equivariance
• multivariance
• product variance
• semivariance
• subvariance

 

Translations

act of varying or the state of being variable

• Bulgarian: променливост (bg) f (promenlivost)
• Dutch: afwijkend (nl)
• Finnish: vaihtelu (fi)
• Georgian: სხვადასხვაობა (sxvadasxvaoba), განსხვავება (gansxvaveba)
• Portuguese: variância f
• Romanian: variere f
• Russian: расхожде́ние (ru) n (rasxoždénije)

difference between what is expected and what happens

• Bulgarian: различие (bg) n (različie)
• Dutch: onverwacht (nl)
• Finnish: poikkeama (fi)
• Romanian: variație (ro) f

state of differing or being in conflict

• Bulgarian: разногла́сие (bg) (raznoglásie)
• Dutch: contradictorisch (nl)
• Finnish: eripuraisuus (fi), erimielisyys (fi)
• Georgian: უთანხმოება (utanxmoeba), ურთიერთწინააღმდეგობა (urtiertc̣inaaɣmdegoba)
• Romanian: contradicție (ro) f, diferență (ro) f
• Russian: разногла́сие (ru) (raznoglásije), противоре́чие (ru) n (protivoréčije)

discrepancy, especially between two legal documents

• Bulgarian: несъотве́тствие (bg) n (nesǎotvétstvie)
• Dutch: tegenspraak (nl)
• Finnish: ristiriita (fi)
• Georgian: შეუსაბამობა (šeusabamoba)
• Romanian: discrepanță (ro) f
• Russian: расхожде́ние (ru) n (rasxoždénije), несоотве́тствие (ru) n (nesootvétstvije)

second central moment in probability (statistics)

• Basque: bariantza (eu)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 方差 (zh) (fāngchā), 變異數／变异数 (biànyìshù)

• Czech: rozptyl m
• Danish: varians c
• Dutch: variantie (nl)
• Finnish: varianssi (fi)
• French: variance (fr) f
• German: Varianz (de) f
• Indonesian: variansi (id), ragam (id)
• Italian: varianza (it) f
• Japanese: 分散 (ja) (ぶんさん, bunsan)
• Malay: varians
• Polish: wariancja (pl) f
• Portuguese: variância f
• Russian: диспе́рсия (ru) f (dispérsija), отклоне́ние (ru) n (otklonénije)
• Spanish: varianza f
• Tagalog: alig

French

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin variantia.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /va.ʁjɑ̃s/

• Audio:

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɑ̃s

Noun

variance f (plural variances)

1. variance

Further reading

• “variance”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.