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Whole numbers are the counting numbers: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, etc. 0 and the negative numbers -1, -2, -3, -4, etc. are also sometimes considered whole numbers.

Rational numbers are numbers which can be expressed by a/b, where a and b are both integer (whole) numbers. In other words, rational numbers are numbers which can be written as fractions of whole numbers. All whole numbers are rational numbers because they can be expressed as a fraction where the numerator is the original number and the denominator is 1 (e.g., 5 = 5/1). Not all rational numbers are whole numbers, however. For instance, 3/7 is a rational number because it is a fraction of integers, but 3/7 is not a whole number.

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Q: What is the difference between a whole number and a rational number?
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