Skip to main content
mathematical function

mathematical function

4.3
A rule that gives each item in one group exactly one item in another group
  • noun
  • /ˌmæθəˈmætɪkəl ˈfʌŋkʃən/
  • Specialized
translation icon : función matemática
  • In mathematics, a mathematical function assigns each input value to exactly one output value.

OK, so basically underlying where preferences come from is a mathematical function we call the utility function.

Autoplay Next

Examples

  • Lovelace, when still a child, a student, she wondered if we could take games like solitaire and turn them into mathematical functions and solve them.

  • OK, so basically underlying where preferences come from is a mathematical function we call the utility function.

  • For example, with a mathematical function, if I shift this function up or down by some constant amount, call it a, then all of its Y values will change.

  • Wavelets are mathematical functions that transform the input signal into different frequency components.

    Blog text (4)
  • And Lovelace said just because you're doing mathematical functions and symbols doesn't mean this things can't represent other things in the real world, such as music.

  • Scientists use a mathematical function to model the relationship between temperature and pressure in gases.

  • A common mathematical function is the quadratic function, which can be graphically represented as a parabola.

Synonyms

function
vsmathematical function
  • Specialized
343 4.9

A rule in math or computing that gives one output for each input

is limited to the precise mathematical relation with exactly one output per input
map
vsmathematical function
  • Specialized
89 8.6

A rule that links each item in one set to one in another

is the standard mathematical definition rather than a procedural rule
mapping
vsmathematical function
  • Specialized
11 4.2

A rule that links each thing in one group to a thing in another group

is stricter and requires exactly one output for each input in math
single-valued function
vsmathematical function
  • Specialized
7.4

A rule that gives exactly one output for each input

is the common mathematical name for that same precise relation

Surface Forms

Morphology

mathematical + function

The compound is compositionally transparent: 'mathematical' restricts the general noun 'function' to its mathematics sense, so the phrase denotes a math-related mapping. Although the full formal definition (domain/range, uniqueness) is technical, a B1 learner who knows both constituents would readily infer that it refers to a function in mathematics.

Etymology

Mathematical function comes from the simple image of a machine or box: you put a number in and it gives exactly one number out. So it means a 'rule' that links each input to exactly one output.