natural numbers

English

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natural numbers

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Noun

natural numbers pl (normally plural, singular natural number)

1. (mathematics) The set of positive integers, {1, 2, 3, ...}.
2. (mathematics, computer science) The set of non-negative integers, {0, 1, 2, 3, ...}.

Usage notes

• In computer science, the natural numbers always include zero. In mathematics, some texts define them to include zero and some exclude it.

Synonyms

• counting numbers (positive integers)
• whole numbers (either sense)
• ℕ

Related terms

• set
• natural number
• inductive definition

Translations

number theory

Chinese: 自然數 / 自然数 (zh) (zìránshù) Dutch: natuurlijk getal (nl) n Finnish: luonnolliset luvut, luonnollisten lukujen joukko Galician: números naturais m pl German: natürliche Zahlen (de) f pl Italian: numero naturale (it) m Japanese: 自然数 (ja) (しぜんすう, shizensu) Korean: 자연수(自然數) (ko) (jayeonsu) Persian: شماره‌های طبیعی (šomâre-hâ-ye tabi'i), اعداد طبیعی (a'dâd-e tabi'i) Portuguese: números naturais Russian: натуральные числа pl (naturalʹnyje čisla) Spanish: números naturales m pl Swedish: naturliga tal n pl Telugu: సహజ సంఖ్యలు (sahaja saṅkhyalu) Welsh: rhifau naturiol m pl

References

• “natural number”, in Dictionary.com Unabridged, Dictionary.com, LLC, 1995–present.
• “natural number”, in The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 4th edition, Boston, Mass.: Houghton Mifflin, 2000, →ISBN.
• "natural number" in WordNet 2.0, Princeton University, 2003.