GMAT Math : Understanding real numbers

Study concepts, example questions & explanations for GMAT Math

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Example Questions

Example Question #31 : Real Numbers

 is the additive inverse of .

Which of the following is equivalent to 

for all values of the variables?

Possible Answers:

Correct answer:

Explanation:

If  is the additive inverse of , then 

.

It follows by way of the commutative and associative properties that

Example Question #32 : Real Numbers

 is the additive inverse of . Which of the following expressions is equivalent to 

for all values of the variables?

Possible Answers:

Correct answer:

Explanation:

If  is the additive inverse of , then 

, or, equivalently,

By way of the distributive property and substitution,

Example Question #1981 : Gmat Quantitative Reasoning

 is the multiplicative inverse of . Which of the following expressions is equivalent to 

for all values of the variables?

Possible Answers:

Correct answer:

Explanation:

If  is the multiplicative inverse of , then 

,

or, equivalently,

.

By way of substitution and the distributive property,

Example Question #34 : Real Numbers

 is the multiplicative inverse of .

Which of the following is equivalent to 

for all values of the variables?

Possible Answers:

Correct answer:

Explanation:

If  is the multiplicative inverse of , then 

By way of the commutative and associative properties, substitution, and the identity property of multiplication:

 

Example Question #1991 : Problem Solving Questions

When evaluating each of the following expressions, which one(s) require you to multiply first?

I) 

II) 

III) 

Possible Answers:

III only

I only

I and II only

I and III only

II and III only

Correct answer:

I and III only

Explanation:

According to the order of operations, any operations within parentheses must be performed first. In expression (II), this is the addition; in expression (III), this is the multiplication.

Expression (I) does not have any parentheses, so, by the order of operations, in the absence of grouping symbols, multiplication precedes addition.

Therefore, the correct response is I and III only.

Example Question #36 : Real Numbers

 is the multiplicative inverse of . Which of the following expressions is equivalent to 

for all values of the variables?

Possible Answers:

Correct answer:

Explanation:

By the distributive property, 

 

 is the multiplicative inverse of , meaning that, by defintion, , so 

.

 is the correct choice.

Example Question #37 : Real Numbers

Define an operation  on the real numbers as follows:

If , then .

If , then 

If , then .

Multiply  by . What is the result?

Possible Answers:

Correct answer:

Explanation:

First, evaluate . Since , use the defintion of  for the case :

.

Now, evaluate . Since , use the defintion of  for the case :

The product of  and  is .

Example Question #38 : Real Numbers

Define an operation  on the real numbers as follows:

If , then 

If , then 

If , then 

Divide  by . What is the quotient?

Possible Answers:

Undefined

Correct answer:

Explanation:

 and  are both calculated by using the defintion of  for the case :

Their quotient is .

Example Question #31 : Real Numbers

Each of  stands for a real number; if one appears more than once in a choice, it stands for the same number each time.

Which of the following diagrams demonstrates a commutative property?

Possible Answers:

If  and , then 

If  then 

Correct answer:

Explanation:

Addition and multiplication are both commutative, which means that a sum or product has the same value regardless of the order in which the addends or factors are written. The diagram

is the one that demonstrates this for addition.

Example Question #40 : Real Numbers

Define an operation  on the real numbers as follows:

If  and  are both negative, then .

If  and  are not both negative, then .

Divide  by . What is the quotient?

Possible Answers:

Undefined

Correct answer:

Undefined

Explanation:

 can be evaluated using the definition of  for the case of both  and  being negative:

 can be evaluated using the definition of  for the case of  and  not both being negative:

The quotient: , which is undefined, as zero cannot be taken as a divisor.

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