What are Positive and Negative Numbers?

What are Positive and Negative Numbers?

Note:

Positive and negative numbers (and zero!) are the building blocks of math. This tutorial will introduce you to positive and negative numbers and show you their location on a number line. Plus, learn a special thing about the number zero!

Keywords:

  • definition
  • positive
  • positive number
  • positive numbers
  • number
  • numbers
  • negative
  • negative number
  • negative numbers
  • negative sign
  • greater than 0
  • less than 0
  • zero
  • number line
  • absolute value
  • opposite

Background Tutorials

  • Recognize opposite signs of numbers as indicating locations on opposite sides of 0 on the number line; recognize that the opposite of the opposite of a number is the number itself, e.g., -(-3) = 3, and that 0 is its own opposite.

      • What is the Opposite, or Additive Inverse, of a Number?What is the Opposite, or Additive Inverse, of a Number?

      What is the Opposite, or Additive Inverse, of a Number?

      Have you ever combined two numbers together and found their sum to be zero? When that happens, those numbers are called additive inverses of each other! In this tutorial, you'll learn the definition for additive inverse and see examples of how to find the additive inverse of a given value.

  • Interpret statements of inequality as statements about the relative position of two numbers on a number line diagram.

      • What's an Inequality?What's an Inequality?

      What's an Inequality?

      Inequalities come up all the time when you're working algebra problems. In this tutorial you'll learn what an inequality is, and you'll see all the common inequality symbols that you're likely to see :)

Further Exploration

  • Understand p + q as the number located a distance |q| from p, in the positive or negative direction depending on whether q is positive or negative. Show that a number and its opposite have a sum of 0 (are additive inverses). Interpret sums of rational numbers by describing real-world contexts.

      • How Do You Add Two Negative Numbers?How Do You Add Two Negative Numbers?

      How Do You Add Two Negative Numbers?

      Adding two negative numbers together? Just add the absolute value of each number together, put a negative sign in front, and you have your answer! See how it's done in this tutorial.