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census

SEN-sus /ˈsɛnsəs/

nounverbB1SATTOEFLUPSC

neutralformalcivic

An official count or survey of a population, typically recording various details of individuals.

Implies a systematic, complete enumeration of a population mandated by a government, rather than a sample survey.

The story behind the word. In ancient Rome, the censor was an official responsible for maintaining the census (estimating the population and wealth of citizens) and supervising public morals. The word comes from the Latin verb censere, meaning 'to assess, estimate, or rate.'

Word relationships

demographic survey: A demographic survey can be small-scale, while a census aims to count every single individual in a population.
enumeration: Enumeration is the general act of counting, while a census is a specific, structured population count.

Commonly confused with

poll: A poll samples a small group to estimate opinions, whereas a census attempts to gather data from the entire population.

Word family

censorial (adjective): Relating to a censor or census.
censor (noun): An official who examines material to suppress unacceptable parts (historically the same Roman official who took the census).

Collocations

conduct a census
census data
decennial census
census taker

Example sentences

"The government uses census data to allocate funding for schools, roads, and hospitals." Government planning
"The 2020 census revealed a significant shift in the country's demographic makeup." Demographics

Memory hook

A census makes sense of the population's numbers. Census = makes sense of us.

When not to use

Do not use for informal polls or commercial market research; it refers to a comprehensive, official count.

Fun facts

The United States Constitution mandates that a census be taken every ten years to determine how many seats each state gets in the House of Representatives.