1Cademy - Comparing $$-1$$ and $$|-1|$$

Learn Before

Comparing $-8$ and $|-8|$

Example

Comparing $-1$ and $|-1|$

To determine the relationship between $-1$ and $|-1|$ , simplify the absolute value expression on the right side. The absolute value of $-1$ corresponds to its distance from zero, which is $1$ ( $|-1| = 1$ ). After simplification, the comparison is directly between the negative integer $-1$ and the positive integer $1$ . Since any negative number is always positioned to the left of a positive number on the number line, $-1 < 1$ . Consequently, the complete statement is $-1 < |-1|$ . This exercise reinforces the principle that a negative number is always strictly smaller than the absolute value of any non-zero integer.