Definitions of Words Used in Math

The more familiar you are with math definitions, the more self-confidence you build with math. Some concepts are major stepping stones, and math teachers are always thrilled when students grasp them. Order of operations, prime factorization, the distributive property, the slope of a line and the mysterious number pi are examples of such concepts.

Order of Operations

The operations in math are addition, subtraction, multiplication and division. The order of operations is the order in which these operations must be performed when simplifying an expression: (1) work within parentheses, (2) complete exponents, (3) perform multiplication/division as seen from left to right and (4) perform addition/subtraction as seen from left to right.

Prime Factorization

A prime is a number whose factors are only 1 and itself, such as 2, 3, 5, 7 and 11. Prime factorization is listing all the prime factors of a number in numerical order, then listing any duplicates as powers.

Distributive Property

Any number or letter next to a set of parentheses is to be multiplied by the items inside the parentheses. You distribute the letter or number to each item inside the parentheses by way of multiplication. You can do this from the left or from the right, with a positive number or a negative. For example, 3(2X + 5) = 3(2X) + 3(5) = 6X + 15.

Slope of a Line

The slope is a ratio of change. A line rising from left to right will have a positive slope. A line that goes downward from left to right has a negative slope. You can use two points on the line to find the slope. You determine the rise of the line, the difference between the Y coordinates, over the run of the line, the difference between the X coordinates, as a fraction.

Pi

The Greek letter pi stands for a particular irrational number. There is no pattern to this non-ending decimal. Approximations are 3.14 and the fraction 22/7. If the diameter of a circle is 1 unit, then the circumference of that circle is pi. Therefore, the circumference of any circle is the length of its diameter times the number pi.