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identity element definition

identity element

an element of a mathematical system that does not change the other elements in the system when it operates on them: zero is the identity element for addition (x + 0 = x) and one is the identity element for multiplication (y × 1 = y)

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2009 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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