Absolute value and number lines | Negative numbers and absolute value | Pre-Algebra | Khan Academy

TL;DR

Absolute value measures the distance of a number from zero on a number line, with negative values becoming positive.

Transcript

We're told to plot these values on a number line. And you see every one of these values have an absolute value sign. So let's take a little bit of a review of what absolute value even is. The way I think about it, there's two ways to think about it. The first way to think about it is, how far is something from 0? So let me plot this negative 3 here... Read More

Key Insights

• #️⃣ Absolute value measures the distance of a number from zero on a number line.
• ❎ Negative numbers become positive when their absolute value is calculated.
• #️⃣ Positive numbers remain the same when their absolute value is calculated.
• 🤔 Absolute value can be thought of as how far a number is away from zero.
• ❓ Absolute value always yields a positive result.
• #️⃣ The concept of absolute value can be used to plot numbers on a number line.
• 🪈 Absolute value simplifies comparing and ordering numbers.

Questions & Answers

Q: What does absolute value measure?

Absolute value measures the distance of a number from zero on a number line.

Q: How does absolute value treat negative numbers?

Absolute value turns negative numbers into positive numbers.

Q: What happens when the absolute value of a positive number is calculated?

The absolute value remains unchanged for positive numbers.

Q: How can absolute value be calculated quickly?

Absolute value is always positive, so it can be obtained by removing the negative sign if present.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• Absolute value represents the distance of a number from zero on a number line.

• Negative numbers become positive when their absolute value is calculated.

• Positive numbers remain unchanged when their absolute value is calculated.