PREDICTOR

Pronunciation (US):

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IPA (US):

 Dictionary entry overview: What does predictor mean? 

• PREDICTOR (noun)
  The noun PREDICTOR has 3 senses:

1. someone who makes predictions of the future (usually on the basis of special knowledge)

2. information that supports a probabilistic estimate of future events

3. a computer for controlling antiaircraft fire that computes the position of an aircraft at the instant of a shell's arrival

  Familiarity information: PREDICTOR used as a noun is uncommon.

 Dictionary entry details 

• PREDICTOR (noun)

Sense 1

Meaning:

Someone who makes predictions of the future (usually on the basis of special knowledge)

Classified under:

Nouns denoting people

Synonyms:

forecaster; predictor; prognosticator; soothsayer

Hypernyms ("predictor" is a kind of...):

illusionist; seer; visionary (a person with unusual powers of foresight)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "predictor"):

astrologer; astrologist (someone who predicts the future by the positions of the planets and sun and Moon)

fortune teller; fortuneteller (a person who foretells your personal future)

Derivation:

predict (make a prediction about; tell in advance)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Information that supports a probabilistic estimate of future events

Classified under:

Nouns denoting cognitive processes and contents

Context example:

the weekly bulletin contains several predictors of mutual fund performance

Hypernyms ("predictor" is a kind of...):

information (knowledge acquired through study or experience or instruction)

Sense 3

Meaning:

A computer for controlling antiaircraft fire that computes the position of an aircraft at the instant of a shell's arrival

Classified under:

Nouns denoting man-made objects

Hypernyms ("predictor" is a kind of...):

computer; computing device; computing machine; data processor; electronic computer; information processing system (a machine for performing calculations automatically)

Holonyms ("predictor" is a part of...):

ack-ack; ack-ack gun; antiaircraft; antiaircraft gun; flack; flak; pom-pom (artillery designed to shoot upward at airplanes)

 Context examples 

Pathologic stage is the strongest predictor of survival.

(Bladder Urothelial Carcinoma, NCI Thesaurus)

The authors note that antibodies against NA remain the only identified predictor of disease severity, according to previously reported trial data.

(Flu infection study increases understanding of natural immunity, National Institutes of Health)

A more accurate predictor of cancer than either a patient's age or his total PSA level.

(Percent Free Prostate-Specific Antigen, NCI Thesaurus)

Loneliness is bad for the heart and a strong predictor of premature death.

(Loneliness Is Bad for Heart, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)

Only age was an independent predictor of hair whitening.

(Grey Hair Linked with Increased Heart Disease Risk in Men, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)

And thanks to our machine-learning approach, we not only validate the role of personality in explaining eye movement in everyday life, but also reveal new eye movement characteristics as predictors of personality traits.

(Eyes Can Indicate Personality Type, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)

The symbol for the linear predictor of a generalized linear model, and can also be used to denote the median of a population.

(Eta, NCI Thesaurus)

These gene mutations are independent predictors of poor prognosis.

(Myelodysplastic Syndrome with Gene Mutation, NCI Thesaurus)

Researchers at Harvard Medical School found that having a vitamin A deficiency, common among some 30 percent of the world’s population in mostly developing nations, was a potent predictor of TB disease risk.

(Vitamin A Supplement May Thwart Tuberculosis Infection, Jessica Berman/VOA)

Patterns of reward processing at age 14-15 were evaluated as predictors of pain complaints at age 16-17.

(Study in Teens Shows Brain Responses to Rewards Linked to Pain Sensitivity, The Titi Tudorancea Bulletin)