Percent
/pərˈsɛnt/noun
A rate, number, or proportion expressed as parts per hundred.
Did you know?“Percent” comes from Latin *per centum*, and the same *centum* root also lives in words like *century* and *centipede*—a reminder that ancient number-words still control how we measure reality.
Etymological Timeline
Latin
Latin
per centum
“for each hundred”
Medieval Italian
Italian
per cento
“per hundred”
17th Century
English
per cent
“by the hundred; out of every hundred”
19th Century
English
percent
“standardized spelling of the mathematical term”
Modern English
English
percent
“a proportion expressed as parts per hundred”