place value

noun

Arithmetic.

1. the value of the place, or position, of a digit in a number or series.

   In the number 794, the location of the digit 4 has a place value of one.

place-value

adjective

1. denoting a series in which successive digits represent successive powers of the base

Word History and Origins

Origin of place value¹

First recorded in 1905–10

Example Sentences

Like the Babylonians, the Mayans had a place-value system of digits and places.

From Literature

Nobody knows when the Indians made the switch to a Babylonian-style place-value number system.

From Literature

“The degree of sophistication with which Aryabhata presents the number of revolutions made by the planets clearly points to the fact that Indians had already evolved by then a working knowledge of zero and the place-value system,” said K. Ramasubramanian, an expert in ancient Indian mathematics at the Indian Institute of Technology in Mumbai.

From Washington Post

Way back in the 5th century, an Indian mathematician used zero in the decimal-based place-value system, an achievement that citizens here have always celebrated with pride.

From Washington Post

It is zero, Dr. Aczel points out, that makes our place-value number system possible.

From New York Times