Phrase guide

real number

noun · 3 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

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1

noun

Meaning 1

The limit of a convergent sequence of rational numbers, whether the limit is a rational number such as 2, -5, or 2/7 or whether the limit is an irrational number such as the square root of two or the circumference of the circle whose radius is one.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: mathematics, sciences

Examples

  • Every integer is a real number, but not vice versa.
  • A real number can be regarded abstractly as an equivalence class of Cauchy sequences of real numbers.WP

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

A floating-point number.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Topics: computing, engineering, mathematics, natural-sciences, physical-sciences, sciences

Examples

  • Even if you pass sqrt an integer, it returns a real number.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

noun

Meaning 3

any rational or irrational number

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: real

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: complex number, complex quantity, imaginary number, imaginary

Narrower terms: scalar product, inner product, dot product, rational number, rational, irrational number, irrational

History

Etymology

No etymology was provided for this word.

Across languages

Translations

41 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Afrikaans: reële getal — limit of a convergent sequence of rational numbers
  • Armenian: իրական թիվ (irakan tʻiv) — limit of a convergent sequence of rational numbers
  • Bulgarian: реа́лно число́ (reálno čisló) — limit of a convergent sequence of rational numbers
  • Catalan: nombre real — limit of a convergent sequence of rational numbers
  • Chinese Mandarin: 實數 /实数 (shíshù) — limit of a convergent sequence of rational numbers
  • Czech: reálné číslo — limit of a convergent sequence of rational numbers
  • Danish: reelt tal — limit of a convergent sequence of rational numbers
  • Dutch: reëel getal — limit of a convergent sequence of rational numbers
  • Esperanto: reela nombro — limit of a convergent sequence of rational numbers
  • Finnish: reaaliluku — limit of a convergent sequence of rational numbers
  • French: nombre réel — limit of a convergent sequence of rational numbers
  • Georgian: ნამდვილი რიცხვი (namdvili ricxvi) — limit of a convergent sequence of rational numbers
  • German: reelle Zahl — limit of a convergent sequence of rational numbers
  • Greek: πραγματικός αριθμός (pragmatikós arithmós) — limit of a convergent sequence of rational numbers
  • Hindi: वास्तविक संख्या (vāstavik saṅkhyā) — limit of a convergent sequence of rational numbers
  • Hungarian: valós szám — limit of a convergent sequence of rational numbers
  • Icelandic: rauntala — limit of a convergent sequence of rational numbers
  • Irish: réaduimhir — limit of a convergent sequence of rational numbers
  • Italian: numero reale — limit of a convergent sequence of rational numbers
  • Japanese: 実数 (jissū) — limit of a convergent sequence of rational numbers
  • Kazakh: нақты сан (naqty san) — limit of a convergent sequence of rational numbers
  • Khmer: ចំនួនពិត (cɑmnuən pɨt) — limit of a convergent sequence of rational numbers
  • Latvian: reāls skaitlis — limit of a convergent sequence of rational numbers
  • Māori: tau tūturu — limit of a convergent sequence of rational numbers
  • Norwegian: reelt tall — limit of a convergent sequence of rational numbers
  • Polish: liczba rzeczywista — limit of a convergent sequence of rational numbers
  • Portuguese: número real — limit of a convergent sequence of rational numbers
  • Romanian: număr real — limit of a convergent sequence of rational numbers
  • Russian: вещественное число́ (veščestvennoje čisló) — limit of a convergent sequence of rational numbers
  • Russian: действительное число́ (dejstvitelʹnoje čisló) — limit of a convergent sequence of rational numbers
  • Serbo-Croatian: реaлни брой — limit of a convergent sequence of rational numbers
  • Serbo-Croatian: realni broj — limit of a convergent sequence of rational numbers
  • Spanish: número real — limit of a convergent sequence of rational numbers
  • Swedish: reellt tal — limit of a convergent sequence of rational numbers
  • Tagalog: bilang na tunay — limit of a convergent sequence of rational numbers
  • Telugu: వాస్తవ సంఖ్య (vāstava saṅkhya) — limit of a convergent sequence of rational numbers
  • Turkish: gerçek sayı — limit of a convergent sequence of rational numbers
  • Turkish: reel sayı — limit of a convergent sequence of rational numbers
  • Turkish: gerçel sayı — limit of a convergent sequence of rational numbers
  • Vietnamese: số thực — limit of a convergent sequence of rational numbers
  • Welsh: rhif real — limit of a convergent sequence of rational numbers