Meaning & use
multiplicative inverse
The number by which a given number must be multiplied to produce a product of one; also called a reciprocal.
See it in a sentence
The multiplicative inverse of five is one fifth, since five times one fifth equals one.
Zero has no multiplicative inverse because no number multiplied by zero can equal one.
A note on using this word
Every nonzero real number has a multiplicative inverse, but zero is the one exception in this system.
Words with a similar meaning
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