regression
noun
\
Definition of regression
Keep scrolling for more
Synonyms & Antonyms for regression
Synonyms
Antonyms
advancement, development, evolution, progression
Visit the Thesaurus for More
Examples of regression in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Then came last year’s regression, all the way to 83rd in the country, with Indiana leaning too hard on too many young players. — Zach Osterman, Indianapolis Star, "Talent infusion, improved depth has Tom Allen betting on his IU football team like he never has before," 18 July 2019 In 2018, though, the combination of star running back Bryce Love’s injuries and a regression on the defensive side forced the Cardinal to turn to a more vertical passing attack. — The Si Staff, SI.com, "2019 Preview: K.J. Costello and a Retooled Offense Look to Keep Stanford in the Mix," 7 Aug. 2019 But Gordon’s regression in his approach must be addressed. — Ryan Divish, The Seattle Times, "Healthy and happy, Dee Gordon looks for a bounceback for the Mariners," 18 Feb. 2019 But more often and in more areas, there has been recent regression. — San Diego Union-Tribune, "Padres rally, then lose series to Marlins on walk-off in ninth," 18 July 2019 About how so many outside of Halas Hall expect a regression. — Lorenzo Reyes, USA TODAY, "Akiem Hicks balks at idea of Bears' regression: 'We can be as dominant as we want to be'," 25 June 2019 For an even easier regression of the V-up, hold the ball in your hands and try a Pilates roll down, says Mansour. — Jenny Mccoy, SELF, "Work Your Entire Core With This Stability Ball Exercise From Celebrity Trainer Astrid Swan," 10 Apr. 2019 But — paired with Lou Trivino’s recent struggles despite getting the win Thursday — Treinen has made a clear regression. — Shayna Rubin, The Mercury News, "3 takeaways from A’s roller-coaster walk-off win capped by Matt Chapman home run," 21 June 2019 The estimates are quite closely related to measures of income and poverty: a simple regression shows that a five-percentage-point increase in the poverty rate is associated with a one-year decline in life expectancy. — The Economist, "Black men in America are living almost as long as white men," 14 June 2019These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'regression.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Keep scrolling for more
Keep scrolling for more
More Definitions for regression
regression
nounFinancial Definition of regression
What It Is
Regression is a statistical method used in finance and other fields to make predictions based on observed values. It is a measure of how correlated a group of actual observations are to a model’s predictions.
How It Works
In the following examples, the blue dots represent the going prices for figurine collections on eBay. Collections with more figurines go for as much as $100; collections with fewer than five figurines sell for very little. How can we predict how much a collection will sell for?
We do it using regression analysis, which essentially finds the formula for the line that most closely fits the observations. That way, we can use the line to predict what the price of the collection might be if we know how many figurines are in a collection, or we can predict how many figurines should be in a collection if we know the asking price.
In our example below, the black lines represent a regression line, which is represented by the formula in the top right-hand corner of each chart. This formula is what analysts also use to predict future values of securities based on the behavior of the actual observations.
Goodness of fit is a component of regression analysis. The term refers to how far apart the expected values of a financial model are from the actual values (that is, how predictive the line is).
As you can see, this regression line has a high goodness of fit; the formula for the regression line comes up with the observed values about 79% of the time.
This next chart is an example of a regression line with low goodness of fit. Here, the values are all over the place, and the formula for the regression line was virtually unable to predict anything.
Why It Matters
Regression is a mathematical version of a crystal ball, but a very cracked, blurry crystal ball. Goodness of fit is the key -- it's a confidence measure. This is because when you've come up with a formula that accounts for most of the variations in a group of, say, price observations, you've also come up with a formula that can be a very reliable predictor of what prices will be in the future. And that’s priceless.
Source: Investing Answers
regression
noun
\
Medical Definition of regression
Keep scrolling for more