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Why do 5 and negative 5 share the same absolute value?
ABoth sit 5 units from one
BBoth sit 5 units from zero
CBoth share the same sign
DBoth square to give 10
Answer & Solution
Correct answer: B. Both sit 5 units from zero
1. Absolute value counts distance from zero, ignoring direction.
2. Walking 5 units right of zero reaches 5.
3. Walking 5 units left of zero reaches negative 5.
4. The two distances match, so the two absolute values match.
5. Their signs are opposite, so a shared sign cannot be the reason.
_Source: OpenStax Intermediate Algebra (CC BY 4.0), Ch 2 "Solving Linear Equations", section 2.7 Solve Absolute Value Inequalities_