data

data da‧ta [ˈdeɪtə, ˈdɑːtə] noun [plural, uncountable]

1. STATISTICS information or facts about a particular subject that someone has collected:

• We cannot tell you the results until we have looked at all the data.

ˌprimary ˈdata MARKETING STATISTICS

information that an organization collects and examines itself, instead of using information that already exists:

• Primary data is most frequently collected by means of surveys based on questionnaires or interviews.

ˌsecondary ˈdata MARKETING STATISTICS

information that an organization has already collected in the past, which it examines again before collecting new information:

• Secondary data can pinpoint areas for further investigation.

2. COMPUTING information in a form that can be stored and used, especially on a computer:

• a new data retrieval system

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data UK US /ˈdeɪtə/ noun [U or plural]

► information, especially facts or numbers, collected to be examined and considered and used to help with making decisions: »

The data shows that more than 80% of the agricultural workforce is Hispanic.

»

financial/personal/sales data

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The database for each health authority should be able to provide data on the number of staff residing in each location.

»

She earns about $13.50 an hour collecting data for the US Department of Labor.

► IT information in an electronic form that can be stored and processed by a computer: »

The students' task was to prepare all the posters and electronic data for the publicity campaign.

→ See also PRIMARY DATA(Cf. ↑primary data), SECONDARY DATA(Cf. ↑secondary data)