Cambridge questions are written in precise mathematical English. If you know exactly what product, difference, justify and estimate ask you to do, you will not lose marks answering the wrong question.
| Term | What it means | Example |
|---|---|---|
| power of 10 | A number made by multiplying 10s together. | 10³ = 1000. |
| index | The small raised number showing how many 10s are multiplied. | In 10⁴ the index is 4. |
| place value | The value a digit has because of its position. | In 3.47 the 4 stands for 4 tenths. |
| decimal point | The dot separating the whole-number part from the decimal part. | In 23.5 the point is between the 3 and the 5. |
| digit | One of the symbols 0 to 9. | 45.6 has three digits. |
| round | To replace a number by a nearby, simpler one. | 4.27 rounds to 4.3. |
| degree of accuracy | How precise an answer must be. | “To 2 decimal places” is a degree of accuracy. |
| decimal place | A digit position after the decimal point. | 3.15 is given to 2 decimal places. |
| significant figures | The digits that carry meaning, from the first non-zero digit. | 45 678 to 3 s.f. is 45 700. |
| approximate | Close to the true value but not exact. | 1.21 is an approximate value of 8.46 ÷ 7. |
| tenths | The first decimal place. | In 0.4 there are 4 tenths. |
| hundredths | The second decimal place. | In 0.07 there are 7 hundredths. |