It means to find a number that, when squared, gives you a specific number. For example, when you ask for the square root of 25, you want to know which number, squared, is equal to 25. The answer in this case is 5.
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The only thing that a square root symbol does is that it symbolises an operation (taking the square root) of whatever is under the sign.
9 is the square ROOT of 81. Calculating a square root is the inverse operation of squaring a number.
square root
Oh, dude, the square root of root beer? That's like asking for the square root of a delicious beverage! Technically, the square root of root beer is just the square root of a number, which is a mathematical operation. So, I guess you could say it's an imaginary number, but like, who cares, right? Just enjoy your root beer and don't worry about its square roots!
The usual rules for "order of operation" apply. Don't forget that the square root of a negative number is an imaginary number. As an example, the square root of -9 is 3i (that is, the square root of +9, times the "imaginary unit").