Which measure describes the spread of a data set?

• A. Median
• B. Range
• C. Mean
• D. Mode

Answer: (B)

The spread of a data set is about how far the values are from each other. The range captures that idea by subtracting the smallest value from the largest value, showing the total spread from end to end of the data.

For example, in a data set that ranges from 3 to 15, the range is 12, which tells you there’s a spread of 12 units between the smallest and largest numbers. This focuses on how far apart the numbers are, not on where the center sits.

The other measures describe central tendency rather than spread. The median tells you the middle value, the mean gives the average, and the mode is the most frequently occurring value. None of these directly describe how spread out the data are, which is why the range is the right choice here.