sampling

Concise Oxford English Dictionary © 2008 Oxford University Press:
sample/ˈsɑːmpl/

▶noun

• 1 a small part or quantity intended to show what the whole is like.

  ■ Statistics a portion of a population, serving as a basis for estimates of the attributes of the whole population.

• 2 a specimen taken for scientific testing or analysis.

• 3 a sound created by sampling.

▶verb

• 1 take a sample or samples of.

• 2 get a representative experience of.

• 3 Electronics ascertain the momentary value of (an analogue signal) many times a second so as to convert the signal to digital form.

  ■ record or extract (a piece of music or sound) digitally for reuse as part of a composition or song.

– derivatives
sampling noun.

– origin ME (as n.): from an Anglo-Norman Fr. var. of OFr. essample ‘example’.