Which term is the value that occurs most frequently in a data set?

Which term is the value that occurs most frequently in a data set?

• A. Percent
• B. Axis labels
• C. Mode
• D. Units

Answer: (C)

The key idea here is the value that appears most often in a data set. That value is the mode. It shows the most common observation, and you can have one mode or several if two or more values tie for the highest frequency. This is different from the mean (the average) and the median (the middle value when data are ordered). To find the mode, look for the number that occurs with the greatest frequency. In this question, the term that describes that concept is mode, so it’s the correct choice. Percent expresses a portion of a whole, axis labels are parts of a graph, and units describe measurement scales—none of these identify the most frequent value.

The key idea here is the value that appears most often in a data set. That value is the mode. It shows the most common observation, and you can have one mode or several if two or more values tie for the highest frequency. This is different from the mean (the average) and the median (the middle value when data are ordered). To find the mode, look for the number that occurs with the greatest frequency.

In this question, the term that describes that concept is mode, so it’s the correct choice. Percent expresses a portion of a whole, axis labels are parts of a graph, and units describe measurement scales—none of these identify the most frequent value.