Concept

Whole Numbers

Whole numbers represented by the symbol

W

are a set consisting of all natural numbers and

0 .

$W = {0, 1, 2, 3 \dots}$

The dots indicate that the set continues to increase indefinitely one step at a time. These are some things to consider about whole numbers and natural numbers.

Natural Numbers	Whole Numbers
$N = {1, 2, 3, 4, 5, \dots}$	$W = {0, 1, 2, 3 \dots}$
The smallest natural number is $1 .$	The smallest whole number is $0 .$
All natural numbers are whole numbers	Not all whole numbers are natural numbers.
Example: Marky's favorite toys are three car figurines, two puzzles, and a guitar.	Example: The school principal has one notebook and ten pencils, yet he has zero erasers.

Be aware that natural numbers are sometimes defined similarly to whole numbers.

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