circulating decimal
- noun
- /ˈsɜrkjəˌleɪtɪŋ ˈdɛsɪməl/
- Specialized
:
decimal periódico
- The fraction one third is written as a circulating decimal: 0.333...
Examples
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When you divide 2 by 7, you get a circulating decimal which continues indefinitely: 0.285714285714...
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When converted to a decimal, 2/7 produces a circulating decimal sequence.
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He explained that a circulating decimal has a set of digits that never ends.
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The fraction one third is expressed as a circulating decimal.
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Can you give an example of a circulating decimal?
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The fraction one third represents a circulating decimal because it can be written as 0.333...
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A circulating decimal like 0.666... shows that the digit 6 repeats endlessly.
Synonyms
A number with digits after the point that repeat forever
A decimal number with a group of digits that goes on forever after the decimal point
Surface Forms
Morphology
A learner who knows 'circulating' as moving in a cycle and 'decimal' as a number with a decimal point could plausibly infer that some pattern in the decimal repeats or cycles. However, the phrase is a technical mathematical term meaning a specific repeating sequence of digits; the everyday sense of 'circulating' does not fully specify this meaning and many languages use 'repeating/recurring' rather than 'circulating', so the relation is only partially predictable.
Etymology
Circulating decimal paints a picture of a small group of digits that keep going round and round after the decimal point; the word circulating suggests movement and decimal is the part after the point. That's why it means 'a decimal where a sequence of digits repeats forever'.
