What does a point stand for when in a mathematical phrase?

Answer 1

A point separates the whole numbers from the decimal numbers. The point is called a decimal place, and anything after the decimal place symbolises a fraction of a number.

For example, 1.5 = 1 and a half


The 5 is in the 'tenths' column, which means any number in that column = 1/10 x the number, so in this case, 1/10 x 5 = 0.5 = a half.


If you have a number like 1.25, the 2 is in the 'tenths' column, and the 5 is in the 'hundredths' column.


This shows 1 + 2 tenths (2/10) + 5 hundredths (5/100), which is the same as one and a quarter.