Whats the absolute value of 8?

1 Answer
Jun 29, 2015

The absolute value of 8 is 8.

In symbols: abs(8) = 8

Explanation:

The absolute value of a number is its 'size'. For positive numbers the size is the same as the number. For negative numbers it is the corresponding positive number.

In symbols:

abs(x) = abs(-x) = x when x >= 0

Another way of thinking of it is to imagine numbers laid out in order, evenly spaced on a line with 0 at the centre, negative numbers on the left and positive numbers on the right, with 1 being a unit distance from 0. The absolute value of any number is then its distance from 0.