In mathematics, more specifically measure theory, a measure is intuitively a certain association between subsets of a given setX and the (extended set) of non-negative real numbers. Often, some subsets of a given set X are not required to be associated to a non-negative real number; the subsets which are required to be associated to a non-negative real number are known as the measurable subsets of X. The collection of all measurable subsets of X is required to form what is known as a sigma algebra; namely, a sigma algebra is a subcollection of the collection of all subsets of X that in addition, satisfies certain axioms.
Measures can be thought of as a generalization of the notions: 'length,' 'area' and 'volume.' The Lebesgue measure defines this for subsets of a Euclidean space, and an arbitrary measure generalizes this notion to subsets of any set. The original intent for measure was to define the Lebesgue integral, which increases the set of integrable functions considerably. It has since found numerous applications in probability theory, in addition to several other areas of academia, particularly in mathematical analysis. There is a related notion of volume form used in differential topology.