: 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
Example Sentences
Recent Examples on the WebAddition 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 Notice this means that, unlike with the real and complex numbers, multiplication of quaternions is not commutative.Quanta Magazine, 25 Oct. 2018