Question

Why is there no commutative property for subtraction or division

Answer 1

Answer:

Because order matters when performing subtraction or division.

Step-by-step explanation:

Consider the provided information.

We need to determine why there no commutative property for subtraction or division.

Commutative property states that although the numbers in an expression are interchanged, there is no change in result.

Let us understand with the help of an example

For addition: The commutative rule is a + b = b + a.

An example in numbers would be 5 + 2 = 2 + 5

Both give 7 as result.

For Subtraction:  4 – 2 = 2, but 2 – 4 = –2

So, in the case of subtraction, moving the numbers around produces a different answer.

For division: 4 ÷ 2 = 2,  2 ÷ 4 = $\frac{1}{2}$

So, in the case of division, moving the numbers around produces a different answer.

Hence, order matters when performing subtraction or division.