Average ˈævərɪdʒ Referred Adjective Age Participants Years Rate/Cost/Price

• the average age of participants was 52 years.
• an average rate/cost/price
• an average annual income/wage/salary
• average daily summer temperatures are about 20°c .

average

1. calculated by adding several amounts together, finding a total, and dividing the total by the number of amounts
• The average age of participants was 52 years.
• an average rate/cost/price
• an average annual income/wage/salary
• Average daily summer temperatures are about 20°C .
• Average earnings are around £20 000 per annum.
• The school has an average class size of 24 students.
• at an average speed of 100 miles per hour
2. typical or normal
• children of below average intelligence
• £20 for dinner is about average.
• The average person can't afford a $60 bottle of wine every night.
• 40 hours is a fairly average working week for most people.

Extra Examples

• an above average climb in prices
• On an average day they sell more than £2 000 worth of vegetables.
3. ordinary; not special
• I was just an average sort of student.
• The route is for walkers of average ability.
• The quality has been pretty average (= not very good).

Word Origin

• late 15th cent.: from French avarie ‘damage to ship or cargo’, earlier ‘customs duty’, from Italian avaria, from Arabic ‘awār ‘damage to goods’; the suffix -age is on the pattern of damage. Originally this referred to a tax on exported goods. The meaning later changed so that it referred to money due from goods that had been lost or damaged at sea. It referred specifically to the way the losses were divided between the owners of the vessel and the owners of the cargo (late 16th cent.). This gave rise to the general sense of calculating the mean (mid 18th cent.).