Meaning & use
sample space
Last updated
Meaning
nouncountable
In probability, the complete set of all possible results of a random experiment.
Grammar: Countable: a sample space, the sample space; often used with 'of' to name the experiment.
Patterns
- the sample space of an experiment
- list the sample space
- an outcome in the sample space
When you roll a fair die, the sample space is 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6.
The sample space for tossing two coins has four outcomes.
Write down the sample space before you calculate any probabilities.
Word forms
| plural | sample spaces |
|---|
Common combinations
- the sample space of an experiment
- The sample space of an experiment lists every possible result.
- finite sample space
- A finite sample space has a countable number of outcomes.
- list the sample space
- The teacher asked us to list the sample space for three coin tosses.
- outcome in the sample space
- Getting a head is an outcome in the sample space.
Synonyms and how they differ
- outcome space
- Outcome space is a less common term with the same meaning; sample space is the standard term in textbooks.
Word family
- sample noun
- A small part chosen to represent a whole.
- sampling noun
- The act of choosing a sample.
Commonly confused: sample space or event?
sample space vs event
An event is a subset of the sample space, not the whole set; for example, 'rolling an even number' is an event within the sample space of a die.
Practice
For a single toss of a coin, what is the sample space?
Choose one answer.
The sample space must list every possible outcome exactly once, so it is {heads, tails}. {heads} is only one event, and {1, 2} belongs to a different experiment.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “sample space”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.