What is the Difference Between Equal and Equivalent?
🆚 Go to Comparative Table 🆚The difference between "equal" and "equivalent" lies in their definitions and usage in mathematics:
- Equal: Two entities are equal when they are the same in all aspects, meaning they are identical and share the same properties.
- Equivalent: Two entities are equivalent when they have the same value, function, or meaning, but they may not be exactly the same in all aspects.
In mathematics, equivalent expressions or quantities may have different structures but produce the same result upon calculation. For example, the mathematical expressions 25 × 5 and 10² + 5² are equivalent because they both yield the same result, 125, when calculated.
In set theory, two sets are equal if they contain the same elements, regardless of the order in which the elements are listed. Two sets are equivalent if they contain the same number of elements, but the order of the elements may be different.
In summary, things that are equal are identical in every aspect, while things that are equivalent are similar in a particular aspect or have the same function or meaning, but they are not identical in all aspects.
Comparative Table: Equal vs Equivalent
The difference between equal and equivalent can be understood through the following table:
| Equal | Equivalent |
|---|---|
| Two values are equal if they have the same value or represent the same thing. | Two values are equivalent if they have the same value, function, or meaning, but may not be exactly the same in all aspects. |
| Equal sets have the same elements and the same number of elements. | Equivalent sets have the same number of elements, but the elements need not be the same. |
| In programming, equality usually means the type and value are the same. | In programming, equivalence means that just the values are the same, but not necessarily the type. |
| Equal sets are a subset of equivalent sets. | Equivalent sets may or may not be equal. |
In summary, equal refers to things that are the same in all aspects, while equivalent refers to things that have the same value, function, or meaning, but may not be exactly the same in all aspects.
- Congruent vs Equal
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- Same vs Similar
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- Difference vs Different
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- Equality vs Diversity
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- Synthon vs Synthetic Equivalent
- Equalization vs Neutralization
- Enough vs Adequate
- Alternate vs Alternative
- Half Equivalence Point vs Equivalence Point
- Absorbed Dose vs Equivalent Dose
- Difference Equation vs Differential Equation
- Liberty vs Equality
- Equivalence Point vs Endpoint
- Equity vs Capital