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# reciprocal

«reciprocal» in Mova's school dictionary: **given and received in return; done by both people or…** — its meaning for a pupil, its sense in the lessons and examples.

### part of speech

adjective; noun (a reciprocal, reciprocals – in maths)

### meaning for a pupil

1) Reciprocal means given and received in return; done by both people or sides for each other: "a reciprocal friendship". [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/R/reciprocal/#m1)

2) (maths) The reciprocal of a number is 1 divided by that number; a number times its reciprocal equals 1. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/R/reciprocal/#m2)

### sense in the lessons

In maths, reciprocals are used to divide fractions: to divide by a fraction, multiply by its reciprocal ("flip it"). In ethics and everyday life, «reciprocal» help or respect goes both ways. Phrases: «reciprocal of», «reciprocal arrangement», «reciprocal respect».

### examples

- The reciprocal of 4 is 1/4. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/R/reciprocal/#x1)
- The reciprocal of 2/3 is 3/2. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/R/reciprocal/#x2)
- To divide by 1/2, multiply by its reciprocal, 2. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/R/reciprocal/#x3)
- Our schools have a reciprocal visit: we go to them, then they come to us. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/R/reciprocal/#x4)
- Friendship should be reciprocal; both people care. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/R/reciprocal/#x5)
- 5 × 1/5 = 1, so 1/5 is the reciprocal of 5. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/R/reciprocal/#x6)
- The two countries have a reciprocal agreement on health care. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/R/reciprocal/#x7)

### note

Adjective, and countable noun in maths. Pronounced ri-SIP-ro-kal. Maths: reciprocal of a/b is b/a; reciprocal of a whole number n is 1/n; zero has no reciprocal (you cannot divide by 0). A number and its reciprocal always multiply to 1. Do not confuse with «opposite» (the opposite of 5 is −5; they add to 0).

### Trees and pragmatics

[Every meaning and example of «reciprocal» parsed by Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/R/reciprocal/), each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.