Words / B2

KOR-uh-layt/ˈkɒrəleɪt/

To correlate is to move together statistically: as one measure changes, so does the other. Hours of study may correlate with scores; that is not the same as cause. Link and connection are everyday nouns; correlate is the research verb. Correlation is the noun (a strong correlation). Writers add a warning: correlation is not causation.

Meaning

To have a connection in which one thing changes with another.

Examples

• “Hours of study correlate with higher scores.”
• “Stress levels correlated with hours of overtime.”
• “The two graphs correlate, but we cannot prove a cause yet.”

Good to know

correlate with. Noun: correlation. Does not prove cause.

Near in meaning

link

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