Use of Greater than and Lesser than Symbols with Solved Examples
What do you mean by Greater than and Less than Symbols?
The greater than and less than symbols are mathematical signs which are used to denote an inequality between any two values.
They are used to compare values.
The greater than and the less symbols reduce the time complexity and it makes understanding easier.
What is Greater than Sign?
“>” is greater than sign, it means that the value on the left side is greater than the value on the right side.
The symbol consists of two strokes of equal length connecting in an acute angle at the right.
For example, 9>1 which means 9 is greater than 1.
What is Less than Sign?
“<” is the less than sign, it means that the value on the left side is less than the value on the right side.
The symbol consists of two strokes of equal length connecting in an acute angle at the left.
For example, 15<16 which means 15 is less than 16.
What is Equal to?
Equal to is denoted by the symbol “=”.
It is used to show the equality between two values.
While writing equations, we also use the equal to symbol.
Comparison of Numbers
Whenever we compare numbers, we generally talk about the sizes of the numbers.
For example,
12 is greater than 9, 4 is less than 10
Instead of writing in words, we will use ‘greater than’ sign or the ‘more than’ symbol and ‘less than’ sign,
12> 9 and 4<10
Tricks to Remember when to use more than Symbol and the Less than Symbol
Method 1
Greater than (>)
Understand the symbol from the left side to the right side,
On the left hand, it has two points and on the right side it has one point, which can be written as,
Denotes greater than
This denotes the greater than sign.
Less than (<)
Understand the symbol from the left side to the right side,
On the left hand, it has one point and on the right side it has two points, which can be written as:
Denotes Less than
Method 2
The crocodile or the alligator method is a very famous method.
We assume the < to be a crocodile and the number on both sides to be the fishes.
The crocodile always wants to eat a larger number of fishes, so the alligator mouth always opens towards the greater number.
We assume that the values on both sides represent the number of fish.
For example, 9>2
Here, the alligator mouth opens towards the value 9 which means that 9 is greater than 2.
Method 3
The letter ‘L’ looks like the less than symbol “<”
The trick to remembering how the less than sign looks is very simple. As “less than” starts with l, the symbol < looks more like the letter L.
Table Showing the Symbols along with their Name
Here are a few Examples of the use of Greater than and Less than Symbols
Questions to be Solved on Greater than and Less than
Question 1) Which sign do we use with these numbers?
2 _____ 8
15______9
Solution) We need to fill in the blanks with greater than or less than symbols,
Since 2 is less than 8, we will use the less than symbol (<)
2 < 8
Since 15 is greater than 9, we will use the greater than symbol (>)
15 > 9
Question 2) Rani has 17 apples and Liza has 29 apples. Find out who has a greater number of apples.
Solution) Let’s list down the given information,
Number of apples Rani has = 17
Number of apples Liza has = 29
Since 29 is greater than 17, 29 > 17
Therefore, Liza has more apples than Rani.
Question 3) Rahul’s mother bought 5 roses and Aditya’s mother bought 2 roses. Find out who’s mother bought a greater number of roses.
Solution) Let’s list down the given information,
Number of roses Rahul’s mother has = 5
Number of roses Aditya’s mother has = 2
Since, 5 is greater than 2, 5>2
Therefore, Rahul’s mother has a greater number of roses than Aditya’s mother.
Question 4) Nirmal got 40 marks in her Maths exam whereas her friend Ritu got 24 marks in the same exam. Who scored fewer marks?
Solution) Let’s list down the given information,
Marks obtained by Nirmal = 40
Marks obtained by Ritu = 24
Since, 24 is less than 40, 24<40
Therefore, Ritu scored less than Nirmal.
Conclusion
This is how we can easily understand the process of using the ‘greater than’ and ‘less than’ sign in mathematics. Concentrate on the methods of remembering the symbols and use them accordingly to solve the problems.
FAQs on Greater Than and Less Than Symbols
1. What is the meaning of less than and greater than symbols?
The symbol > is the ‘greater than’ sign or the ‘more than’ symbol. It means that the value on the left side is greater than the value on the right side whereas the symbol < is the less than symbol which denotes that the value on the left is less than the value on the right.
2. How to easily remember greater than and less than symbol?
An easy way to remember which symbol is which and how it implies is to remember that the open end of the symbol < is always facing the bigger number and the arrow points > to the small number. Another way to remember the greater than and less than signs or any form of formulas and concepts in mathematics will be by writing them down in a separate note that might help in revision before exams.
3. What is the Alligator method followed to remember these signs well?
There will always be a fun way followed to learn any tough concept if you have an interest in learning. And one of the best ways followed to memorize the greater than and less than signs is to imagine them as little alligators or crocodiles, with the numbers on either side representing as a number of fish the alligators would like to eat. In this case, The alligator always wants to eat the larger number of fish, so whatever number the mouth of the alligator is open towards is the larger number. This is called the alligator method.
4. What are the major uses of greater than and lesser than symbols?
The greater than and less than symbols are the two most commonly used and important mathematical signs which are used to denote an inequality between any two values. They are used to compare any two values. The greater than and the less than symbols reduce the time complexity and it makes understanding of maths concepts much easier. These signs are not just limited to academic learning but are also used a lot in real-life incidents.
5. What are the basic mathematics symbols used in this chapter?
The first one is < lesser than symbol which is used to denote 6 is lesser than 10 by 6<10. Then comes the greater than and equal to symbols which are used as 10>6 and 4=4. And the final ones are greater than or equal to symbols and lesser than or equal to symbols which can be explained as 4≥5 and 4≤5.
