a average of

USAGE SUMMARY

The phrase "a average of" is not correct; it should be "an average of." You can use it when discussing statistical data or measurements that represent a central value.
Example: "The report showed an average of 75% satisfaction among the participants."

⚠ May contain grammatical issues

Science

News & Media

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

21 human-written examples

:a Average of Inside the House, Fahrenheit.

Cornell University

A recent survey by NatWest bank found that grocery shopping was students' biggest weekly expenditure after rent, with food and drink costing a average of £19.78 a week.

The Guardian - Money

In limited-overs cricket, his List A average of 53.11 is the fourth highest of all time and while he struggled to hold down a regular place in a competitive England line-up, he averaged 42 in one-day internationals, scoring his maiden century against Australia at Old Trafford last summer.

The Guardian - Sport

(a) Average of pairwise geodesic distances.

EPJ Data Science

He comes with an unimpressive List A average of 52.33.

BBC

Table 5 Application of the proposed spectrofluorimetric method for the determination of NF in pure samples Claimed taken (ng ml-1) Claimed found (ng ml-1) % Recoverya 50 49.991 99.98 150 150.009 100.07 250 250.896 100.36 350 347.552 99.30 Mean   99.93 ± SD   0.449 a Average of three determinations.

Chemistry Central Journal

Human-verified similar examples from authoritative sources

Similar Expressions

39 human-written examples

Right now, patients pay an average of a $1.80-a-gram 1.80-a-gram 1.80-a-gram for

Vice

The American Society of Civil Engineers gave our infrastructure an average of a "D".

Huffington Post

Today, a slave costs an average of $90.

Huffington Post

Detectives earn an average of $88,000 a year, while sergeants earn an average of $91,000.

The New York Times

You live for an average of an hour.

The New Yorker

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

Always use the article "an" before "average" when referring to a statistical average; the correct phrase is "an average of".

Common error

Avoid using the article "a" before the word "average"; the correct phrasing is "an average of." Using "a" is grammatically incorrect because "average" begins with a vowel sound.

Linguistic Context

The phrase "a average of" is grammatically incorrect. It's intended to function as a noun phrase describing a statistical measure. As Ludwig AI points out, the correct form is "an average of".

Expression frequency: Uncommon

Frequent in

Science

48%

News & Media

44%

Academia

8%

Less common in

Formal & Business

0%

Encyclopedias

0%

Wiki

0%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

In summary, the phrase "a average of" is grammatically incorrect; the correct form is "an average of". It's used to describe a typical value within a dataset, most commonly in science and news contexts. As Ludwig AI explains, using "an" instead of "a" corrects the grammatical error, ensuring clarity and accuracy in your writing. Remember to use "an average of" to maintain grammatical correctness and enhance the credibility of your statements.

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

an average of

Corrects the grammatical error by using the proper article "an" instead of "a" before the word "average".

a mean of

Replaces "average" with "mean", another term for the same statistical measure, while maintaining grammatical correctness.

an arithmetic mean of

Replaces "average" with "arithmetic mean", adding specificity about the type of average.

a typical value of

Uses "typical value" instead of "average" to convey a general sense of what is normal or expected.

a central tendency of

Replaces "average" with the more formal "central tendency", referring to a measure of the center of a distribution.

an approximation of

Substitutes "average" with "approximation", indicating a rough estimate rather than a precise calculation.

a median value of

Replaces "average" with "median value", referring to the middle value in a data set.

a statistical norm of

Uses "statistical norm" in place of "average", highlighting the standard or typical measure in a set of data.

an expected value of

Employs "expected value" to denote the anticipated or predicted average outcome.

a general estimate of

Replaces "average" with "general estimate" to suggest an approximate overall assessment.

FAQs

What is the correct way to say "a average of"?

The grammatically correct way to say it is "an average of". The article "an" should be used before words that begin with a vowel sound.

Is there a difference between "average of" and "mean of"?

In most contexts, "mean of" and "average of" are interchangeable and refer to the same statistical measure. However, "average" can sometimes refer to other measures of central tendency, such as the median or mode, while "mean" specifically refers to the arithmetic mean.

Can I use "typical value" instead of "an average of"?

Yes, in some contexts, you can use "a typical value of" as an alternative to "an average of". This is particularly suitable when you want to convey a general sense of what is normal or expected, rather than a precise statistical calculation.

When should I use "median" instead of "average"?

Use "median" instead of "average" when dealing with data sets that have outliers or skewed distributions. The median, or "a median value of", represents the middle value in a data set and is less sensitive to extreme values than the average (mean).