commutative law

noun

Logic.

1. a law asserting that the order in which certain logical operations are performed is indifferent.

Word History and Origins

Origin of commutative law¹

First recorded in 1835–45

Example Sentences

As a quantum physicist he would have been acutely aware that at the deepest level, nature disobeys the commutative law.

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Even after the relevance of the commutative law has been pointed out, some bloggers don’t accept it.

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Maybe we’re wired to doubt the commutative law because in daily life, it usually matters what you do first.

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Without that breakdown of the commutative law, there would be no Heisenberg uncertainty principle, atoms would collapse, and nothing would exist.

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Fair enough, but that begs the question I’d like to explore in some depth here: Is this commutative law of multiplication, a × b = b × a, really so obvious?

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