da-ta \'da^-t-e, 'dat- also 'da^:t-\ n pl but sing or pl in constr, often attrib [L, pl. of datum] (1646) :factual information (as measurements or statistics) used as a basis for reasoning, discussion, or calculation usage Although still occas. marked with a disapproving [sic], data is well established both as a singular and as a plural noun. The singular data is regularly used as a mass noun denoting a collection of material; it is almost never used as a count noun equivalent to datum. Our evidence shows plural use to be considerably more common than singular use. syn: No thesaurus entry for 'data'. Maybe you mean: 1. dada 2. date da-tum \'da^-t-em, 'dat-, 'da^:t-\ n [L, fr. neut. of datus] (1646) 1 pl da.ta \-e\: something given or admitted esp. as a basis for reasoning or inference 2 pl datums: something used as a basis for calculating or measuring usage see DATA