Mean, in statistics, is the sum of a series of numbers divided by the number of elements in the series. Suppose five children weigh 68, 61, 68, 69, and 64 pounds. The sum of their weights is 330 pounds. Divide this sum by 5, the number of children: 330 divided by 5 = 66. The mean of this series of numbers is 66, and the mean weight of the children is 66 pounds. This single weight of 66 pounds can be used to approximately describe the weight of each child, even though none of the children weighs exactly 66 pounds. The mean is often called the arithmetic average or arithmetic mean. See also Average ; Median ; Mode ; Statistics (Probability) .
