decimal point

noun

: a period, centered dot, or in some countries a comma at the left of a proper decimal fraction (such as .678) or between the parts of a mixed number (such as 3.678) expressed by a whole number and a decimal fraction

Examples of decimal point in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The computer keeps track of where the decimal points. Lance Eliot, Forbes, 22 Nov. 2024 It’s buried more than 15,000 zeroes after a decimal point. Michael Irving, New Atlas, 31 Oct. 2024 Granted, with default rates counted to the right of the decimal point, there’s likely some wiggle room in those comparisons without risk of catastrophic error. Barnet Sherman, Forbes, 17 Sep. 2024 The most precise and accurate atomic clock in the world, the ultracold strontium clock at JILA in Boulder, is like a stopwatch that can count the billionths of a nanosecond, or 18 digits past the decimal point. Allison Parshall, Scientific American, 11 Sep. 2024 See all Example Sentences for decimal point 

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1771, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of decimal point was circa 1771

Dictionary Entries Near decimal point

Cite this Entry

“Decimal point.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/decimal%20point. Accessed 24 Dec. 2024.

Kids Definition

decimal point

noun
: the dot at the left of a decimal (as .678) or between the decimal and whole parts of a mixed number (as 3.678)

More from Merriam-Webster on decimal point

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