Benchmark
/ˈbɛn(t)ʃmɑːk/ noun, verb
noun, verb ·Common ·High school level
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A standard by which something is evaluated or measured.
"Near-synonym: criterion"
- 2 a surveyor's mark on a permanent object of predetermined position and elevation used as a reference point wordnet
- 3 A surveyor's mark made on some stationary object and shown on a map; used as a reference point.
"Near-synonym: datum"
- 4 a standard by which something can be measured or judged wordnet
- 5 A computer program that is executed to assess the performance of the runtime environment.
Verb
- 1 To measure the performance or quality of (an item) relative to another similar item in an impartial scientific manner.; To give certain results in a benchmark test. intransitive, transitive
- 2 To measure the performance or quality of (an item) relative to another similar item in an impartial scientific manner.; To use something (e.g., a competitor's product) as a standard to improve one's own thing. ambitransitive, transitive
Synonyms
All synonymsExample
More examples"The Federal Reserve cut its benchmark discount rate to an 18-year low."
Etymology
From bench + mark. First use appears c. 1842. Originally a mark cut into a stone by land surveyors to secure a bench (from land surveying jargon in the 19th century, meaning a type of bracket), to mount measuring equipment. The figurative sense first appears c. 1884.