the reciprocal of the arithmetic mean of the reciprocals of a set of specified numbers: the harmonic mean of 2, 3, and 4 is 3(1⁄2 + 1⁄3 + 1⁄4)–1 = 36⁄13
harmonic mean in American English
a number associated with a set of numbers, that is equal to the number of numbers divided by the sum of the reciprocals of the numbers (h = n ÷ (1/a + 1/b)) (Ex.: for 1⁄2, 1⁄3, and 1⁄4, h = 3 ÷ (2 + 3 + 4) = 1⁄3 or for 1⁄2 and 1⁄3, h = 2 ÷ (2 + 3) = 2⁄5)