What is a legend on a graph

The legend of a graph reflects the data displayed in the graph’s Y-axis, also called the graph series. This is the data that comes from the columns of the corresponding grid report, and usually represents metrics. A graph legend generally appears as a box to the right or left of your graph.

What is a legend in data?

A legend is used to identify data in visualizations by its color, size, or other distinguishing features. Simply connect one or more data visualizations to a legend and they will automatically display a table of symbols and descriptions to help users understand what is being displayed.

What is shown in the legend of a chart?

A chart legend appears by default when you first create a chart. For most charts, legends show the names and colors of each series of data. The legend text is taken from the chart’s data range.

How do you write a legend for a graph?

  1. Title: A brief title that applies to the entire figure, including all panels. …
  2. Materials and methods: A description of the techniques used. …
  3. Results: A statement of the results that can be gleaned from the particular figure. …
  4. Definitions: An explanation of features in the figure.

What is a legend in a bar graph?

The legend tells us what each bar represents. Just like on a map, the legend helps the reader understand what they are looking at. Legend examples can be found in the second and third graphs above.

How do you write a legend?

  1. Set the story in today’s world.
  2. Change or add plot details.
  3. Change a few main events.
  4. Change the gender of the hero or heroine.
  5. Change the point of view (example: Tell the legend of St. …
  6. Write a sequel.
  7. Write a prequel.
  8. Develop an existing legend into a readers’ theatre script.

What is legend in Excel graph?

Legends are a small visual representation of the chart’s data series to understand each data series without any sort of confusion. Legends are directly linked to the chart data range and change accordingly. In simple terms, if the data includes many colored visuals, legends show what each visual label means.

What does a figure legend include?

An effective legend is the key to help a figure stand alone. The title should describe what the figure is about. The methods include all (and no more than) the necessary details to understand the figure without referring back to the body text. The results show the key findings as seen in the figure.

How do you use figure legends?

  1. Title– The title of a figure legend should describe the figure, clearly and succinctly. …
  2. Methods– These methods are meant to be VERY brief and to describe the design of your experiment. …
  3. Results– Here, you provide a single sentence on the results shown in the figure.
What is a legend on a map?

A legend displays the meaning of the symbols, colors and styles used to represent geographic data on the map. Legends consist of examples of the symbols on the map with labels containing explanatory text. Legends have patches that show examples of the map symbols.

Article first time published on

What is the purpose of a legend?

In literature, the function of a legend is to present the story of human actions in such a way that they are perceived by the audience to be true. Actions are presented as if they have taken place within human history.

What is a legend or key?

Definition: A key or legend is a list of symbols that appear on the map. For example, a church on the map may appear as a cross, a cross attached to a circle, a cross attached to a square. … Symbols and colours can also represent different things like roads, rivers and land height.

What is the difference between a legend and a key?

A legend is a caption, a title or brief explanation appended to an article, illustration, cartoon, or poster. A key is an explanatory list of symbols used in a map, table, etc.

How do you show legend in Excel chart?

  1. Click the chart.
  2. Click Chart Elements. next to the table.
  3. Select the Legend check box. The chart now has a visible legend.

What is a figure legend in a lab report?

A figure legend is a chunk of text that accompanies each figure in a laboratory report. Its purpose is to explain the figure clearly and thoroughly, providing readers with all the information necessary to understand the figure without returning to the main text of the lab report.

How do you teach legends?

1 Legend Elements After reading, discuss the elements that legends share. Have students create a chart with the headings “facts,” “hero” and “natural element.” Reread the legend to students and have them fill in the chart with elements they hear. Give students the opportunity to discuss their findings in groups.

What is a legend in a paper?

Legends or captions explain figures, tables, or images in the manuscript. As you know, using of figures and tables in research papers serves the purpose of providing illustrative description of the subject matter. Similarly, what legends or captions do is provide descriptive information of the figures or tables.

Are figure legends in italics?

Instead, APA uses Figure Captions below the figure. Figure Captions include the figure number (which is italicized), a brief descriptive phrase (which substitutes for a title), and any brief explanation necessary for understanding the figure.

How do you make a figure legend in Word?

Select the object (table, equation, figure, or another object) that you want to add a caption to. On the References tab, in the Captions group, click Insert Caption. In the Label list, select the label that best describes the object, such as a figure or equation.

How do you write a figure caption on a graph?

Figure captions Figures should be labeled with a number followed by a descriptive caption or title. Captions should be concise but comprehensive. They should describe the data shown, draw attention to important features contained within the figure, and may sometimes also include interpretations of the data.

Do tables need legends?

Just like tables all figures need to have a clear and concise legend caption to accompany them. Images help readers visualize the information you are trying to convey. … For images, be sure to: Include scale bars.

Where should a legend go on a map?

Legends usually appear near the bottom of a map or around the outer edges, outside of or within the map. If you’re placing the legend within the map, set it apart with a distinctive border, and take care not to obscure important areas of the map.

What is a legend scale?

legend. scale plots a color gradient with an associated quantitative scale.

What are symbols on a map?

A symbol is an abstraction or pictorial representation of something else. Symbols on a map consist of discrete points, lines, or shaded areas; they have size, form, and (usually) color. Map symbols present information collectively, leading to appreciation of form, relative position, distribution, and structure.

What makes a legend a legend?

Legends resemble folktales in content; they may include supernatural beings, elements of mythology, or explanations of natural phenomena, but they are associated with a particular locality or person and are told as a matter of history.

Why do we use legend in a map?

The map legend contains all the symbols (symbology) used in the map to help the reader understand what the polygons, lines, points, or grid cells represent.

What does a key legend look like?

A map legend or key is a visual explanation of the symbols used on the map. It typically includes a sample of each symbol (point, line, or area), and a short description of what the symbol means. For example, a short segment of a blue sinuous line may be labeled ‘rivers’.

Whats the difference between a key and a legend on a map?

Technically, the key is part of the map legend. The key explains the symbols while the legend holds the key and other information.

What is legend in pie chart?

Line Graph, Bar Graph, or Column Chart: Each legend key represents a single data series. … Pie Chart or Circle Graph: Each legend key represents only a portion of one data series. To use the same example from above, but for a pie chart, every cut of the pie is a different color that represents each “Snacks” entry.

How do I change the legend on an Excel graph?

  1. Select your chart in Excel, and click Design > Select Data.
  2. Click on the legend name you want to change in the Select Data Source dialog box, and click Edit. …
  3. Type a legend name into the Series name text box, and click OK.

How do you hide the legend on a chart?

  1. Click the chart in which you want to show or hide a legend. This displays the Chart Tools, adding the Design, Layout, and Format tabs.
  2. On the Layout tab, in the Labels group, click Legend.
  3. Do one of the following: To hide the legend, click None.

You Might Also Like