# percentage

/pɝˈsɛnədʒ/ (US) · /pəsˈɛntɪdʒ/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/percentage
Updated: 2026-06-19

## Senses

### 1. a part of 100

noun · CEFR B1

a number or rate that shows how much of something there is out of every 100.

For teachers: a rate, number, or amount in each hundred; a proportion of a total expressed as a fraction of 100.

- A high percentage of the students passed the final exam with top marks.
- The report indicates that a significant percentage of the local population remains underserved by the current public transport infrastructure.

Usage: Often used with 'of' followed by a noun phrase; the verb agreement typically matches the noun following 'of'.

### 2. a share of money

noun · CEFR B2

a share of the money made from a sale or a business deal.

For teachers: an allowance, commission, or share of profits or gross receipts.

- The salesperson gets a small percentage of every car they sell.
- The author negotiated a higher percentage of the digital sales as part of her new contract with the publishing house.

### 3. benefit or advantage

noun · CEFR C2 · Informal

the personal advantage or profit you might get from a situation.

For teachers: the likelihood of profit, advantage, or success in a particular course of action.

- I don't see much percentage in arguing with him when he's in a bad mood.
- The veteran gambler knew there was no percentage in playing against the house when the odds were so heavily stacked against him.

Teaching tip: This sense is relatively rare in modern speech and is mostly found in older literature or specific idioms like 'there is no percentage in...'.

## Examples

- A high percentage of students passed the final exam.
- The bank increased the interest rate by a small percentage to match the new national policy.
- While the raw numbers suggest a decline in sales, the percentage of returning customers has actually remained stable over the last fiscal quarter.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.