Calculations

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The method of deriving numerical outcomes by applying mathematical principles in problem-solving situations
2. The act of evaluating and processing data by means of mathematical techniques to achieve specific results
3. The process of performing mathematical operations to determine a numerical result

Etymology: "Calculations" is simply the plural of "calculation", so the history below belongs to that noun. Its ancestor is the Latin "calculus", meaning a small pebble. Romans reckoned sums by moving such pebbles across a counting board, and the Latin verb "calculare" grew from that practice: to count with pebbles, then simply to count or compute. From "calculare" came the Latin noun "calculatio", meaning a reckoning or computation, and English borrowed it from there in the Middle English period. The English noun was built from "calculate" plus the suffix "-ion", which turns an action verb into a noun naming the act or its result. So a calculation is, literally, the act of reckoning with stones.

Synonyms: computations, evaluations, assessments