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Definition of "expectancy" []

  • The act or state of expecting; expectation: Tense with expectancy, I waited for my name to be called. (noun)
  • The state of being expected. (noun)
  • Something expected. (noun)
  • An expected amount calculated on the basis of actuarial data: a life expectancy of 70 years. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Use "expectancy" in a sentence
  • "University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, who has studied health inequalities and reproductive patterns, points out that healthy life expectancy is short for African Americans and women depend on extended family networks for support."
  • "There's too much of … what I call an expectancy culture of things being provided."
  • "Because of that, there's what we call the expectancy effect."