rate
Definitions
General English
General Science
- noun the speed at which something moves or changes compared with another measurable quantity such as time
- verb to evaluate how good something is or how large something is
Accounting
- noun the money charged for time worked or work completed
- noun an amount of money paid, e.g. as interest or dividend, shown as a percentage
- noun the value of one currency against another
- noun an amount, number or speed compared with something else
Computing
- noun the quantity of data or tasks that can be processed in a set time
Electronics
- A quantity or change in quantity measured with respect to time. For example, a speed of 1000 km/s, or a frequency of 1000 Hz.
- A quantity or change in quantity measured with respect to the same or another quantity. For instance, a bit error rate.
- A quantity measured with respect to a whole, or to a given standard. For instance, a committed information rate.
- To establish or specify a rating, such as a power rating.
- The cost per unit time, or per other quantifiable measure. For example, the cost per hour or per kilometer.
Forex
- A computed quantity of the value of an asset expressed in terms of a quantity of another asset that is usually in the same class. For example, a deposit interest rate is the amount of interest earned per year on a certificate of deposit, while a forex rate is the value of a single unit of base currency expressed in units of a counter currency.
Medical
- noun the number of times something happens in a set time
Real Estate
- verb to value something, especially a property, for tax purposes
Travel
- noun the amount of money charged for something, e.g. for providing a service or for working for a particular period of time
Origin & History of “rate”
English has two words rate. The commoner, ‘relative quantity’ (15th c.), comes via Old French rate from medieval Latin rata ‘calculated, fixed’, as used in the expression pro rata parte ‘according to a fixed part, proportionally’. this was the feminine form of ratus, the past participle of rērī ‘think, calculate’, from which English also gets ratio, ration, reason, etc. The other rate, ‘scold’ (14th c.), is now seldom encountered except in its derivative berate (16th c.). It is not certain where it comes from, although a possible source is Old French reter ‘accuse, blame’, which comes from Latin reputāre (ancestor of English reputation).
