Periodic Trend Definition

The original table of elements published in 1869 by the Russian chemist Dmitri Mendeleyev organized elements according to periodic table trends.
The original table of elements published in 1869 by the Russian chemist Dmitri Mendeleyev organized elements according to periodic table trends. Clive Streeter / Getty Images
by Anne Marie Helmenstine, Ph.D.
Dr. Helmenstine holds a Ph.D. in biomedical sciences and is a science writer, educator, and consultant. She has taught science courses at the high school, college, and graduate levels.
Updated July 24, 2017

Periodic Trend Definition: A periodic trend is a regular variation the properties of an element with increasing atomic number. A periodic trend is attributed to regular variations in the atomic structure of each element.