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Reddit
reddit.com β€Ί r/askphilosophy β€Ί is there an opposite to zero or is it inherently without opposite?
r/askphilosophy on Reddit: Is there an opposite to zero or is it inherently without opposite?
December 10, 2013 -

My girlfriend and I have discussed this a few times and can't quite decide if there is or not - we are definitely not philosophers.

Initially, we agree that zero is similar nothing and the opposite of nothing is everything. Therefore, infinity is the opposite of zero. But, looking at it numerically, you have negative (or a lack of) values. You could also say that a circumstantial "lack of" anything can be treated at a negative value.

But does this then mean that you could potentially say the opposite of infinity is actually negative infinity? Does this approach not put zero as the only non-value therefore meaning that it isn't even comparable?

At this point it gets a little deep for us, but our only other conclusion is that the opposite of 0 is actually 0. If this is the case, then is this the only example of this?

Top answer
1 of 3
10

If by "opposite" you mean "additive inverse" (as -1 is to 1, -2 is to 2, etc.), then 0 is its own opposite.

Initially, we agree that zero is similar nothing and the opposite of nothing is everything. Therefore, infinity is the opposite of zero.

I don't think there's any obvious sense in which infinity corresponds to "everything". There are infinite sets that don't contain everything, for example.

But does this then mean that you could potentially say the opposite of infinity is actually negative infinity?

You could say this is true about the surreal numbers:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Surreal_number

At this point it gets a little deep for us, but our only other conclusion is that the opposite of 0 is actually 0. If this is the case, then is this the only example of this?

As I said above, if by "opposite" you specifically mean "additive inverse", then 0 is its own opposite, and it's the only real number that has this property.

2 of 3
2

I'd say "opposite" without further qualification or context is not really a well defined operation. Generally, by "opposite", I think we generally mean something like "reachable by reflecting on an axis of symmetry". But things frequently have multiple symmetries, meaning multiple potential opposites. Eg. we may consider the opposite of 2 to be -2 - if we reflect it through the origin, we get that value. But we might also consider the opposite to be 1/2 - it's multiplicative, rather than additive inverse. These symmetries may be context dependent - we could have different "origin points" that we're reflecting between. Eg. we might view "blue" to be the opposite of "red" if we pick the midpoint of human visible colours as our "point of reflection". But a scientist not attaching any special significance to visible light wouldn't see any reason to view wavelengths of 450nm to be the opposite of wavelengths of 620 nm? But we might also have other, culturally influenced reflection points (eg. "blue" may again be considered the opposite of "red" when viewed through the lens of "colours symbolising particular political viewpoints"). All in all, to speak of "the opposite" of something is to commit an error, in preassuming there could only be one such thing. That may be the case when you have a particular symmetry in mind, but you need to realise that this is what you're doing, and to discard that context is to change the question.

Ie opposites are properties of not just a thing on its own, but of that thing, a type of symmetry, and an axis of symmetry. Change any of those things, and you get different opposites.

In your case, you're looking at 0 using a particular "point of reflection" and symmetry in mind, but in that particular symmetry your point of reflection itself is the same as the point you're "reflecting", meaning 0 would indeed be its own opposite along that same additive symmetry. You can of course bring up different symmetries - but all those symmetries give rise to different "opposites" all the time - they're not just fallbacks for when one symmetry doesn't give you a good answer, making the other one the "real" opposite.

(And as an aside, in IEEE floating point maths, there are actually distinct 0 and -0 values, so in that context, the (additive) opposite of 0 would indeed be -0).

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CK-12 Foundation
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Flexi answers - Does zero have an opposite number? | CK-12 Foundation
September 11, 2025 - The opposite of a number is the same distance from 0 on a number line as the original number but on the other side of 0.Zero is its own opposite because it is neither negative nor positive. Therefore, the opposite of 0 is 0.
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Quora
quora.com β€Ί What-is-the-opposite-of-zero-0
What is the opposite of zero (0)? - Quora
Answer (1 of 12): This is a good time to show how mathematics works by taking some intuitive but vague concept, and making it precise by clever definitions. What should we mean by opposite? Well, a reasonable thing to mean is that when we perform some operation \vee (call it whatever you want, b...
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GeeksforGeeks
geeksforgeeks.org β€Ί mathematics β€Ί what-is-the-opposite-of-zero-in-math
What is the opposite of Zero in math? - GeeksforGeeks
October 29, 2021 - And, negative numbers like -1, -2, -3, -4 their opposite will be 1, 2, 3, 4 placed left from 0. All negative numbers have their opposite as the same numbers with positive value. Hence, the opposite of zero is itself.
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Math Answers
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What is the opposite of zero? - Answers
Zero has no multiplicative opposite (or inverse). However, it has an additive inverse, and that is also zero, since 0 + 0 = 0 Β· The opposite value of a null set would be an infinite set, but infinity is not a real number.

number that, when added to the original number, yields zero

In mathematics, the opposite or inverse of a number ... The opposite numbers satisfy the properties listed below. The opposite of 0 is 0. Two opposite numbers have the same absolute value. … Wikipedia
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ByteLearn
bytelearn.com β€Ί home β€Ί math problems β€Ί grade 7 β€Ί absolute value and opposite integers
(Solved)-What number is the opposite of 0 ?
July 29, 2023 - \newlineThe opposite of a number is defined as the number that, when added to the original number, yields zero.
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Brainfuse
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Lesson - Absolute Value and Signed Integers
The absolute value of a number ... are opposites if they have the same absolute value but different signs. Opposites are the same distance from 0 on a number line, and they are on opposite sides of 0....
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Tutorela
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Opposite numbers | Tutorela
June 6, 2024 - The opposite of a number has the same absolute value, but with opposite sign. ... As we have already studied in previous articles, in positive numbers, the plus sign can be omitted. So it is that: ... 0 + 00+0the result is zero. Therefore, the number opposite zero is zero itself.
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Math.net
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Opposite of a number
The opposite of a number is a number that is the same distance from 0 as another number, but in the opposite direction.
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Open Space
openspace.infohio.org β€Ί courseware β€Ί lesson β€Ί 2064 β€Ί overview
Math, Grade 6, Rational Numbers, Opposite of a Number | INFOhio Open Space
Negative numbers are on the opposite side of 0 from positive numbers. The opposite of a positive number is negative, and the opposite of a negative number is positive.
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OER Commons
oercommons.org β€Ί courseware β€Ί lesson β€Ί 603 β€Ί overview
Math, Grade 6, Rational Numbers, Opposite of a Number | OER Commons
The number 0 is the only number that is its own opposite. Whole numbers and the opposites of those numbers are all integers.
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E-TutorWorld
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Number Opposites (Opposite Numbers) - Definition & Examples
June 18, 2024 - The opposite of -12 is 12. In this case, the original number is negative, and its opposite is a positive value. ... The opposite of 0 is 0 itself.
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Brainly
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[FREE] what number is the opposite of 0
This property is part of what makes zero unique in mathematics: it is equal to its negative. ... Therefore, the final answer is: 0. For instance, if we take the number 5, its opposite is -5.
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Quora
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Why is the opposite of zero in mathematics zero? - Quora
Unless you are a bot your surname would lead me to suspect your home language is English. If I am mistaken then please forgive me for what i am about to say: Sloppy language habits lead to sloppy thinking habits. THERE IS NO OPPOSITE TO A NUMBER. ...
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Easy Peasy All-in-One Homeschool
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Opposites – Easy Peasy All-in-One Homeschool
December 23, 2018 - Opposites come in handy because when added together we get 0. When you solve equations like x + 2 = 3, you are trying to get that extra number to disappear so that the variable is by itself. How do you do that? You add the opposite. ... History β€” Early Am. ... Music β€” Early Am. ... Please check the FAQ page before posting a question! Support Group Or find a specific location or level group List of facebook groups
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YouTube
youtube.com β€Ί watch
Why is Zero Its Own Opposite? Understanding Zero on the Number Line - YouTube
In this video, we explore why zero is considered its own opposite on the number line. Understanding this unique property of zero is key for mastering concept...
Published Β  October 16, 2024