Math Vocabulary

Associative Property of Addition

(a+b)+c=a+(b+c) ; The grouping of addends does not affect their sum

Associative Property of Multiplication

(ab)c = a(bc); changing the grouping of factors in a product does not change the product

numerical expression

A mathematical phrase that includes only numbers and operation symbols: 60+25, 42÷7+5.

less than

A number to the left of another number on the number line: 6<8. The symbol is also called less than.

more than

A number to the right of another number on the number line. 8>6. The symbol is also called more than.

base

A side of a polygon or a face of a solid figure by which the figure is measured. A height or altitude intersects the base.

zero property

Adding zero to a number does not change the number's value: 0+7=7, 0+11y=11y.

variable expression

An expression that uses one or more letters to represent one or more numbers: 8y, -2yz+3z.

total

Another name for sum. Often used for more than one adden: 8+9+23+17=57.

evaluate

Find what a math expression equals, often by substituting a value for a variable: 3x7=21 or 8y=?, y=4, 8x4=32.

increased by

If you increase a value by an amount or number, it becomes bigger by that amount or number.

PEMDAS

In the order of operations, working left to right repeatedly: Parentheses, Exponents; then Multiplication, Division; then Addition, Subtraction.

difference

The amount by which one value is greater or smaller than another.

Absolute Value

The distance a number is from zero on a number line

absolute value

The distance from a point on the number line to zero, or the value of any number ignoring its sign (This makes the number positive.).

exponent

The number that indicates how many times the base is used as a factor: 4 X 4 X 4 = 4 cubed, 4 is the base; 3 is the exponent.

order of operations

The order in which the multiplication, division, addition, and subtraction are done within an expression when evaluating it.

associative property

The property which states that for all real numbers a, b, and c, their sum or product is always the same, regardless of their grouping: (a+b)+c=a+(b+c), (ab)c=a(bc).

identity property

The property which states that multiplying a number by 1 does not change the number's value: 6 X 1 = 6, 1 x a = a, 3 x 2/2 = 6/2.

distributive property

The property which states that multiplying a sum by a number gives the same result as multiplying each addend by the number and then adding the products: a(b+c)=ab+ac.

commutative property

The property which states that two or more addends can be added or that two or more factors can be multiplied in any order without changing the sum or product., a+b=b+a

sum

The result after numbers and/or variables are added: 13+2=15, 3y+34y=37y.

quotient

The result after numbers and/or variables are divided: 7÷2=7/2, 8y÷2=4.

product

The result after numbers and/or variables are multiplied: 7x9=63, 9x7y=63y.

simplify

The result of either combining like terms in an expression: 4y+3y+2=7y+2 or using the property of a/a=1 to reduce a fraction so that no common factor exists in both the numerator and denominator: 18/21=6/7.

whole number

The set of natural numbers and 0, {0, 1, 2, 3, . . .}.

Integer

The set of whole numbers and their opposites

integer

The set of whole numbers and their opposites: 8, -23, 14/2.

Adding a positive and a negative integer

The sum may be either positive or negative

Adding negative integers

The sum will be negative

Adding positive integers

The sum will be positive

power

The value of a number represented by a base and an exponent or simply the expression formed by a base and exponent.

Identity Property of Addition

This property states that the sum of any number & zero is that number; n + 0 = n

Distributive Property of Multiplication Over Addition

This property states that to mulitiply a sum by a number, you can multiply each addened by the same number and add the products., a(b + c) = ab + ac

Distributive Property of Multiplication Over Subtraction

This property states that to multiply a difference by a number, you can multiply each number in the subtraction expression by that number and subtract the two products.: a(b - c) = ab - ac

Subtraction

To add the opposite

Inverse Property of Addition

a + (-a) = 0; , a + (-a) = 0; the sum of a number and its opposite is 0

Inverse Property of Multiplication

a(1/a)=1; this property states then when a number is multiplied by its reciprocal, the result is one

Commutative Property of Addition

a+b=b+a; the order of the addends does not affect the sum

Commutative Property of Multiplication

ab=ba; , changing the order of numbers will not affect their product

Positive Integer

an integer that is greater than zero

Negative integer

an integer that is less than zero

Identity Property of Multiplication

the product of any number and 1 is equal to the original number (a x 1 = a)

Opposite

two numbers that are the same distance from zero on a number line but have different signs