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In addition, we have the augend and addend, and in subtraction, minuend and subtrahend. If I'm running comparisons like 2 < 3, 4 ≥ 1, etc., what are the terms 2 & 3 and 4 & 1 respectively called?

nikodaemus
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    comparands ? – Mauro ALLEGRANZA Nov 09 '16 at 19:55
  • @Mauro ALLEGRANZA pretty neologism. I would have proposed existing words minorant / majorant – Jean Marie Nov 09 '16 at 20:05
  • @MauroALLEGRANZA "Comparand" sounds pretty great to me. Subject and comparand? – nikodaemus Nov 09 '16 at 20:33
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    I have never heard any of these terms. I do not think they are useful. Use "left" and "right". – Caleb Stanford Nov 09 '16 at 20:39
  • @6005 You've never herd of addend? (O-o) – nikodaemus Nov 09 '16 at 21:10
  • @skia.heliou No I haven't, not in many years of college math education. I find it to be quite a silly term now that I see it. I can understand why people don't use it. For one thing, the augend / addend distinction is artificial and purely syntactic. – Caleb Stanford Nov 09 '16 at 21:11
  • Oops! "herd" ;-P – nikodaemus Nov 09 '16 at 21:30
  • So yeah, comparand, particularly with its computing origins, is perfect for me in that I'm developing a programming framework. Since not all of my colleagues come from a left-to-right style of thinking, more specific terms come in handy when describing parameters – nikodaemus Nov 09 '16 at 21:33
  • @MauroALLEGRANZA Would you like to formally answer this question so I can mark it for you etc.? – nikodaemus Nov 10 '16 at 20:24
  • Just curious: Now, English is not my first language, but I have studied math exclusively for four years and I have also never heard the words 'addend', 'minuend' or 'subtrahend'. Are these common in mathematics? And how do they supply extra (and useful) information in comparison to 'term' (or 'summand')? Is 'addend' just equivalent to saying 'positive term'? – Christopher.L Dec 06 '16 at 13:49
  • @Christopher.L They're not so common. I needed the terms for a program a while back and they've been in my head ever since. For the addition operation 1 + 2 = 3, 1 is the augend (the number being added to) and 2 is the addend (the number being added). I don't know how useful the information is for most people though... – nikodaemus Dec 07 '16 at 21:36
  • Ah, I see. I did not know that. No, perhaps not that useful in most situations (but I'm sure there are some), but interesting nonetheless (if nothing else, then from a linguistic point of view). – Christopher.L Dec 07 '16 at 23:04

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Comparand is the term for the subjects of a comparison, particularly in computing or linguistics.

References

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nikodaemus
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  • Is it possible to name the ones on left and right slightly differently from each other? I am looking for a way how to name two variables. Like compared and comparator or perhaps compared x comparand? – Qwerty Jan 20 '22 at 17:11