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Glite Dictionary
ceteris paribus

ceteris paribus

1 9.9
When all other things stay the same
  • idiom
  • /ˈsɛtərɪs ˈpɛrɪbəs/
  • Formal
: ceteris paribus
  • Ceteris paribus, a higher Productivity Index is more favorable.

It's the first rule you learn in economics equals one-on-one, ceteris paribus, hold all else equal.

Examples

  • I have some background in accounting and decided to examine, ceteris paribus, what Walmart would need to charge its customers to double the wages of all their hourly workers and provide family health insurance to each.

    Blog text (13)

  • Ceteris paribus, efficient contract design.

    Academic text (2017)

  • Ceteris paribus, it makes no sense to say that one greatly enjoys something but has absolutely no reason to do it.

    Academic text (2000)

  • The Law of Supply states that the quantity supplied is positively related to price, ceteris paribus.

    Blog text (34)

  • The first principle implies that a transmission line that crosses a valuable property will have a greater value impact than one that crosses a property with little value, ceteris paribus.

    Academic text (2017)

  • Obama's Buffett Rule: Would bring in $7.7 million per day, ceteris paribus, but he deficit spends: $4,156,591,657.67 per day.

    Blog text (34)

  • I find that states with language homogeneity scores of 53.86, ceteris paribus, are most likely to experience coups, while states appreciably higher than or below that threshold are less likely to experience a coup.

    Academic text (1998)

  • In economics, we often say that ceteris paribus, an increase in price leads to a higher supply.

  • Ceteris paribus, if the weather is good, more people will attend the event.

  • When evaluating different investment options, ceteris paribus, the one with higher returns is generally preferred.

Surface Forms

ceteris paribus positive

Morphology

ceteris + paribus

This is a Latin fixed phrase whose constituents are not English words and have no clear dictionary definitions for an English learner, so a B1 learner who 'knows the constituent words' would still not be able to derive the meaning. Although the phrase is widely borrowed in academic registers across languages, it is lexicalized as a set formula meaning 'all other things being equal' and functions idiomatically, making it opaque to average B1 learners.

Etymology

Ceteris paribus is a Latin phrase that literally names ceteris 'other things' and paribus 'equal'. It was used to mean 'if nothing else changes', so today it means 'when all other relevant factors stay the same'.