Etymologically
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percent

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 15 October 2026 at 15:15. This address is a permanent link to this version.
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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /pəˈsɛnt/ (UK); /pɚˈsɛnt/ (US)[1]

Etymology

It is a shortening of New Latin per centum (“by the hundred”),[2][3][4][5] from per (“by, through”) and centum (“hundred”),[2][4][6] compare Italian per cento.[3] Barnhart says the English form was perhaps also influenced in some cases by Middle French pour cent.[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

“By the hundred”, after a numeral: 1568, as per cent.[3][6][5] or the 1560s.[2]

Semantic evolution

Until the early 20th century it was often treated as an abbreviation and written per cent. with a full stop.[2] The noun, “a percentage”, is from 1667, and the adjective from 1888.[6][5] Percentage is from 1786–90, in Jeremy Bentham's works,[3] and percentile, in statistics, from 1885.[3]

Timeline

  • 1568 – per cent..[3]
  • 1667 – noun, a percentage.[6]
  • 1786 – percentage.[3]
  • 1885 – percentile.[3]
  • 1888 – adjective.[6]

Modern meaning

Adverb

  1. In or for every hundred: ten percent.

Noun

  1. One part in a hundred; a percentage.

Adjective

  1. Paying or charging interest at a stated percentage.

Word family

  • percental
  • percenter
  • percentile
  • percentage
  • cent
  • century
  • hundred
  • per

Usage notes

The American Heritage Dictionary notes that a quantity can be increased by any percentage but cannot be decreased by more than 100 percent, so advertising claims such as a 300 percent reduction are logically nonsensical.[7] In British English per cent, written as two words, is the normal form.[1]

References

  1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  4. ^ a b The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (2000), 4th ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
  5. ^ a b c Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  6. ^ a b c d e Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  7. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin