datum

[ dey-tuhm, dat-uhm, dah-tuhm ]

noun

, plural da·ta [dey, -t, uh, dat, -, uh, dah, -t, uh] da·tums

1. a single piece of information, as a fact, statistic, or code; an item of data.
2. Philosophy.
   1. any fact assumed to be a matter of direct observation.
   2. any proposition assumed or given, from which conclusions may be drawn.
3. Also called sense datum. Epistemology. the object of knowledge as presented to the mind. Compare ideatum.
4. Surveying, Civil Engineering. any level surface, line, or point used as a reference in measuring elevations.
5. Surveying. a basis for horizontal control surveys, consisting of the longitude and latitude of a certain point, the azimuth of a certain line from this point, and two constants used in defining the terrestrial spheroid.

datum

/ ˈdeɪtəm; ˈdɑːtəm /

noun

1. a single piece of information; fact
2. a proposition taken for granted, often in order to construct some theoretical framework upon it; a given See also sense datum

Usage Note

See data.

Word History and Origins

Origin of datum¹

First recorded in 1640–50; from Latin: “a thing given,” neuter past participle of dare “to give”

Word History and Origins

Origin of datum¹

C17: from Latin: something given; see data

Example Sentences

However, partial data from several police forces in England and Wales shows at least 39,000 knives were surrendered.

From BBC

A photo-based approach is also much less laborious for pregnant people, making it easy to collect data over a period of weeks instead of just a few days.

From Science Daily

Conventional approaches to storm forecasting involve large numerical simulations run on supercomputers incorporating mountains of observational data, and they still often result in inaccurate or incomplete predictions.

From Science Daily

They must treat data or information that can be used to trace a person’s citizenship or immigration status as confidential.

From Los Angeles Times

There was no shortage of available data to search for patterns in malformations and symptoms to identify subtypes for which treatment protocols could be devised.

From Science Daily

Related Words

• accomplishment
• action
• case
• circumstance
• data
• evidence
• experience
• factor
• incident
• information
• performance
• phenomenon
• statistic