Learn the meaning, then the English wording
Knowing the mathematics and recognizing the wording are separate skills. Read a term in your strongest language, connect it to the example, then cover the translation and explain the English term yourself.
Pay attention to the quantity requested. A question asking for the value of 2x is not asking for x; finding the equation of a line is different from finding its slope.
12 essential terms
| English | Armenian | Russian | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| Variable | Փոփոխական | Переменная | 3x + 5 = 26 → x |
| Coefficient | Գործակից | Коэффициент | 7x → 7 |
| Constant term | Ազատ անդամ | Свободный член | 4x + 9 → 9 |
| Equation | Հավասարում | Уравнение | 3x + 5 = 26 |
| Inequality | Անհավասարություն | Неравенство | 2x + 1 ≤ 9 |
| Slope | Անկյունային գործակից | Угловой коэффициент | y = 3x + 2 → 3 |
| Y-intercept | y առանցքի հետ հատման կետ | Точка пересечения с осью y | y = 3x + 2 → (0, 2) |
| Root of an equation | Հավասարման արմատ | Корень уравнения | x² − 5x + 6 = 0 → x = 2, 3 |
| Arithmetic mean | Միջին թվաբանական | Среднее арифметическое | (4 + 6 + 8) ÷ 3 = 6 |
| Probability | Հավանականություն | Вероятность | 3/10 = 0.3 = 30% |
| Radius | Շառավիղ | Радиус | r = 5 → d = 10 |
| Similarity | Նմանություն | Подобие | k = 2 → S₂ = 4S₁ |
Phrases that change the mathematics
| English phrase | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| at least | greater than or equal to | x ≥ 5 |
| at most | less than or equal to | x ≤ 5 |
| increased by 20% | multiply the original by 1.20 | 50 × 1.20 = 60 |
| decreased by 20% | multiply the original by 0.80 | 50 × 0.80 = 40 |
| per | for each one; a rate | 120 km in 2 h → 60 km per hour |
| consecutive integers | integers that follow one another | n, n + 1, n + 2 |
Read a question in two passes
From words to an inequality
A club has a $30 budget. Each notebook costs $4. What is the greatest number of notebooks the club can buy?
Show worked solution
- First identify what n counts: the number of notebooks, a nonnegative integer.
- The total cost must be at most $30, so 4n ≤ 30 and n ≤ 7.5.
- Answer the requested count, not the decimal bound. Seven notebooks cost $28; eight cost $32 and exceed the budget.
Answer: 7 notebooks