commutative
adjective
com·mu·ta·tive
kə-ˈmyü-tə-tiv 
ˈkäm-yə-ˌtā-tiv
ˈkäm-yə-ˌtā-tiv
1
: of, relating to, or showing commutation
2
: of, relating to, having, or being the property that a given mathematical operation and set have when the result obtained using any two elements of the set with the operation does not differ with the order in which the elements are used
a commutative group
addition of the positive integers is commutative
Examples of commutative in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
What if, through the commutative property, the man is basically the child at seven?
—
Joshua Rothman, The New Yorker, 3 Dec. 2024
These subgroups retain some of the most useful properties of commutativity, without forcing the entire group to be commutative.
—Leila Sloman, WIRED, 6 Oct. 2024
In a commutative group, all subgroups are normal, but this isn’t always true more generally.
—Leila Sloman, WIRED, 6 Oct. 2024
The effects are commutative: the benefits of exercise compound when done on a daily basis.
—Marie Bladt, Vogue, 10 Sep. 2024
Rearranging the roots in this way preserves the algebraic relationship between them: The equation is still true because multiplication and addition are commutative, meaning that swapping the order of things — like shuffling the roots around — doesn’t change the answer.
—Quanta Magazine, 3 Aug. 2021
Addition of ordinary numbers is commutative, as is multiplication, and this is very helpful for simplifying computations.
—Eugenia Cheng, WSJ, 30 June 2022
Like the quaternions, octonion multiplication is not commutative.
—Quanta Magazine, 25 Oct. 2018
The elements of class groups must obey the associative and commutative properties of addition, and must include a zero element, such that zero plus any other element leaves the element unchanged.
—Kevin Hartnett, Quanta Magazine, 2 Mar. 2017
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Joshua Rothman, The New Yorker, 3 Dec. 2024
These subgroups retain some of the most useful properties of commutativity, without forcing the entire group to be commutative.
—Leila Sloman, WIRED, 6 Oct. 2024
In a commutative group, all subgroups are normal, but this isn’t always true more generally.
—Leila Sloman, WIRED, 6 Oct. 2024
The effects are commutative: the benefits of exercise compound when done on a daily basis.
—Marie Bladt, Vogue, 10 Sep. 2024
Rearranging the roots in this way preserves the algebraic relationship between them: The equation is still true because multiplication and addition are commutative, meaning that swapping the order of things — like shuffling the roots around — doesn’t change the answer.
—Quanta Magazine, 3 Aug. 2021
Addition of ordinary numbers is commutative, as is multiplication, and this is very helpful for simplifying computations.
—Eugenia Cheng, WSJ, 30 June 2022
Like the quaternions, octonion multiplication is not commutative.
—Quanta Magazine, 25 Oct. 2018
The elements of class groups must obey the associative and commutative properties of addition, and must include a zero element, such that zero plus any other element leaves the element unchanged.
—Kevin Hartnett, Quanta Magazine, 2 Mar. 2017
Cite this Entry
“Commutative.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/commutative. Accessed 21 Apr. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
commutative
adjective
com·mu·ta·tive
ˈkäm-yə-ˌtāt-iv
kə-ˈmyüt-ət-iv
kə-ˈmyüt-ət-iv
: of, relating to, having, or being the property of giving the same mathematical result no matter in which order two numbers are used with an operation
addition is commutative because a + b = b + a
commutativity
noun
kə-ˌmyüt-ə-ˈtiv-ət-ē
ˌkäm-yə-tə-
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