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Difference Between Coefficient and Constant

Coefficient vs Constant

When two things co-vary, there are two possibilities. One is that the change in a thing is concomitant with the change in another. When the age of a kid increases, there is a simultaneous increase in his height. The older the child the taller he is. The second possibility is that two things vary inversely. Here, higher magnitude of one thing results in higher value of another or vice versa. The two properties are said to be negatively co-related. If the value of a thing remains same over time, it is said to be a constant whereas if its value changes depending upon conditions, it is said to be variable and needs to be multiplied with a coefficient to calculate its value. This article will attempt to find out differences and relation between coefficients and constants.

In mathematical studies, a coefficient is normally a number that is a multiplicative factor used with terms in an expression.

For example, in the expression 3x+5=2y

3 and 2 are coefficients with the terms x and y while 5 is a constant term. In a majority of expressions, coefficients are real numbers. However there are expressions where they are not numbers but other terms whose value is also not clear such as in the equation ax+ by=7 where a and b respectively are the coefficients for the terms x and y.

In mathematics, a constant is a special number that is used in many geometric and algebraic problems. Pie is one such universal constant that finds various applications in mathematics and other life sciences. Constants are definable and also computable with all constants having been calculated down to several decimal places. Some common examples of mathematical constants are pie, Euler’s number, Feigenbaum constants, and Apery’s constant.

Coefficient vs Constant

• A coefficient is a real number in front of a variable that determines the value of the term in a mathematical expression.

• On the other hand, a constant is a number that has a fixed value and its value does not change over time.


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