Brush up your maths: answer to place values exercise

Put these numbers into order from smallest to largest: 0.1, 0.005, one thousand, 1.001, 100, 0.05.

The order is: 0.005, 0.050, 0.1, 1.001, 100, one thousand.

0.005 is smaller than 0.050, because the 5 is in the hundredths place in 0.050 and in the thousandths place in 0.005. 0.050 is ten times 0.005. 1.001 is bigger than 0.1, because the first non-zero number is in the units place in 1.001 and in the tenths place in 0.1. 1.001 is more than ten times the size of 0.1. One thousand is 1000 and is clearly the largest number.

It might help to write the numbers vertically, keeping the places in columns:

   0.005
   0.050
   0.1
   1.001
    100
1000

Back to question.

To Martin Bland's M.Sc. index.

To Martin Bland's home page.

This page maintained by Martin Bland.
Last updated: 27 September, 2007.