What is another phrase for the median in a data set?

The median is defined as the middle value in a sorted list of numbers. When the data set is arranged from smallest to largest, the median represents the point that divides the dataset into two equal halves: half of the values fall below it and half fall above it. In cases where there is an even number of observations, the median is calculated by taking the average of the two middle scores. This characteristic of the median directly corresponds to the phrase "the middle score," making it the most accurate synonym in the context of describing the positioning of data within a set.

The other phrases listed do not accurately represent the concept of the median. For example, the average score refers to the mean, which is calculated by summing all the scores and dividing by the number of scores, whereas the most frequent score refers to the mode, which is the value that appears most often in a data set. The summed score is simply the total amount obtained by adding all the values together, which does not provide insight into the distribution or central tendency of the data set.