algebra

IPA/ˈældʒɪbrə/
KK[ˈældʒəbrə]IPA/ˈældʒɪbrə/

algebra — noun

1. the branch of mathematics where letters such as x and y stand in for unknown num

1.nounB1
Definition

the branch of mathematics where letters such as x and y stand in for unknown numbers, and rules are used to work out what those numbers are.

Example

Dimitri found algebra easier than geometry once her teacher explained how to solve for x.

uncountable: 'algebra' takes no article

Most students in Taiwan begin learning algebra in their first year of junior high school.

collocation: learn / study + algebra

Common collocations
  • do algebra
  • learn algebra
  • study algebra
  • teach algebra
  • good at algebra
  • algebra problem
  • algebra class
  • algebra teacher

Grammar Patterns

uncountable noun, no plural

Usage Note

Uncountable in everyday use: never 'an algebra' or 'algebras'. The plural form appears only in advanced mathematics, where it refers to specific abstract systems and is rare outside university textbooks.

Common Mistakes

I have two algebras tomorrow.
I have two algebra classes tomorrow.
algebra itself is uncountable; add a counter noun like 'class' or 'lesson'.
She is studying an algebra.
She is studying algebra.
no article before the subject name.

Word family

Common collocations

Nouns

  • algebra class
  • algebra teacher
  • algebra problem
  • algebra textbook
  • algebra homework
  • algebra test

Phrases

  • do algebra
  • learn algebra
  • study algebra
  • teach algebra

Prepositions

  • algebra of (something)
  • good at algebra
  • in algebra

Etymology

ArabicMedieval LatinItalianEnglish

Comes from the Arabic phrase 'al-jabr', meaning 'the reuniting of broken parts'. It first appeared in the title of a famous 9th-century book by the Persian mathematician al-Khwarizmi, who explained how to balance equations by moving terms from one side to the other. The word travelled through Medieval Latin into European languages and reached English in the 16th century, by which time it had narrowed in meaning from 'restoring or reuniting' to the modern sense of using letters to represent numbers.