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Original · left

Label (tag)

A slip of paper or fabric attached to an object giving information about it.

First in use: the 1300s
Duplicate · right

Label (machine learning)

The known answer attached to a training example in supervised learning.

First in use: the 1950s

Label / Label (tag) / Label (machine learning)

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Duplicate share · 12 mo—
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Colour keyGrey · original meaningGreen · duplicate meaningAmber · contested (40–60%)How colours work

Clothing tags vs. training labels.

Which meaning of Label is the original, and which one is the duplicate riding on its name? Label (tag) came first (the 1300s). Label (machine learning) arrived in the 1950s. The data below shows which one owns the word now.

Wikipedia pageviews since 2015

Label (tag)Label (machine learning)
English Wikipedia pageviews since July 2015 load here.

Duplicate's share of attention

Green line = duplicate's % · above 60 it owns the word · below 40 the original does

Share-of-attention line loads here.

The case for each meaning

Sourced definitions, usage stats and quotes

Original · the 1300s

Label (tag)

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12-mo pageviews—
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Duplicate · the 1950s

Label (machine learning)

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More duplicated terms

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