commutative

[ kuh-myoo-tuh-tiv, kom-yuh-tey-tiv ]

See synonyms for commutative on Thesaurus.com

adjective

of or relating to commutation, exchange, substitution, or interchange.
Mathematics.
- (of a binary operation) having the property that one term operating on a second is equal to the second operating on the first, as a × b = b × a.
- having reference to this property: commutative law for multiplication.

Origin of commutative

1525–35; <Medieval Latin commūtātīvus, equivalent to Latin commūtāt(us) (past participle of commūtāre;see commute, -ate¹) + -īvus-ive

Other words from commutative

com·mu·ta·tive·ly, adverb
com·mu·ta·tiv·i·ty, noun
non·com·mu·ta·tive, adjective
un·com·mu·ta·tive, adjective
un·com·mu·ta·tive·ly, adverb
un·com·mu·ta·tive·ness, noun

Words Nearby commutative

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use commutative in a sentence

This is included in the preceding, but it is simpler in that the various operations are commutative.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 17, Slice 8 | Various
Among equals, it is called commutative justice, the which alone is here in question.
Explanation of Catholic Morals | John H. Stapleton
Negative Numbers may be regarded as resulting from the commutative law for addition and subtraction.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 2, Slice 5 | Various
“Simple” practice involves an application of the commutative law.
Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 2, Slice 5 | Various
Often the meaning of a sentence tacitly implies that the commutative law does not hold.
The philosophy of B*rtr*nd R*ss*ll | Various

British Dictionary definitions for commutative

commutative

/ (kəˈmjuːtətɪv, ˈkɒmjʊˌteɪtɪv) /

adjective

relating to or involving substitution
maths logic
- (of an operator) giving the same result irrespective of the order of the arguments; thus disjunction and addition are commutative but implication and subtraction are not
- relating to this property: the commutative law of addition

Derived forms of commutative

commutatively, adverb

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Scientific definitions for commutative

commutative

[ kə-myōō′tə-tĭv, kŏm′yə-tā′tĭv ]

Of or relating to binary operations for which changing the order of the inputs does not change the result of the operation. For example, addition is commutative, since a + b = b + a for any two numbers a and b, while subtraction is not commutative, since a - b ≠ a - b unless both a and b are zero. See also associative distributive.

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