Definition "cumulative" in the Collins English Dictionary & Thesaurus

cumulative adj

1 growing in quantity, strength, or effect by successive additions or gradual steps
cumulative pollution

2 gained by or resulting from a gradual building up
cumulative benefits

3 (Finance)

a (of preference shares) entitling the holder to receive any arrears of dividend before any dividend is distributed to ordinary shareholders

b (of dividends or interest) intended to be accumulated if not paid when due

4 (Statistics)

a (of a frequency) including all values of a variable either below or above a specified value

b (of error) tending to increase as the sample size is increased
♦ cumulatively adv
♦ cumulativeness n

cumulative distribution function n
(Statistics) a function defined on the sample space of a distribution and taking as its value at each point the probability that the random variable has that value or less. The function F(x) = P(X<leeq>x) where X is the random variable, which is the sum or integral of the probability density function of the distribution, (Sometimes shortened to) distribution function

cumulative evidence n
(Law) additional evidence reinforcing testimony previously given

cumulative voting n
a system of voting in which each elector has as many votes as there are candidates in his constituency. Votes may all be cast for one candidate or distributed among several