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Last updated on 19 September 2025
Multiplication is the process of adding a number repeatedly. The numbers that are being multiplied together are called factors. The result of multiplying two or more numbers is called the product. In math, multiplication is one of the basic arithmetic operations that we use in our daily lives.
Multiplication is used when we have to multiply two or more numbers to find the product. Let us learn more about multiplication in this article. If there are 4 packets of ice cream and each box has 6 ice creams, find the total number of ice creams.
Solution: We can solve this question by adding 6 + 6 + 6 + 6 = 24. But it takes a lot of time and effort, so we solve it as 6 × 4 = 24. In other words, multiplication is the repeated addition of numbers.
Commutative Property: This property states that when we multiply two numbers, changing their order doesn't affect the product. Multiplying 3 rows by 4 columns or 4 columns by 3 rows gives the same result:
3 × 4 = 4 × 3 = 12.
Associative Property: This property tells us that if we multiply three or more numbers one after the other, the grouping of the numbers doesn't have an impact on the outcome of the product. For example, let us take 2, 4, and 3.
If we multiply them in the same order, we get: (2 × 4) × 3 = 24(2 × 4) × 3 = 24.
If we rearrange the order and multiply: 3 × (2 × 4) = 24
(2 × 4) = 8, then 8 × 3 = 24
Distributive Property: According to this property, if we multiply a number by a sum, the result will be equal to another expression where we multiply the same number by each addend separately and then add the products. Let's see this with an example:
First multiply 2 × 4 = 8, then 2 × 2 = 4, finally add 8 + 4 = 12.
2 × (4 + 2) = (2 × 4) + (2 × 2) = 8 + 4 = 12
Properties of multiplication are often applied to practical calculations in everyday life. Some of them are listed below:
What is 6 × 9 and 9 × 6
6 × 9 = 54 and 9 × 6 = 54
The product we get after multiplying a number with another number is the same as the product that we get after changing the order of the multiplier and the multiplicand. 9 × 6 is the same as 6 × 9 in terms of the final answer (product).
What is (3 × 4) × 2 and 3 × (2 × 4)?
24
(3 × 4) × 2 = 12 × 2 = 24; 3 × (2 × 4) = 3 × 8 = 24
They both are giving the same answer, 24. That is because if we are changing the grouping of numbers, we still get the same answer. This means, changing the group of numbers doesn't change the product.
What is 71 × 1?
71
If any number ‘n’ is multiplied by 1 the answer will be the number ‘n’ itself.
What is 450 × 0?
0
When we multiply any number by 0, the result will be 0 only.
Use the distributive property to calculate 3 × (6 + 2).
24
(3 × 6) + (3 × 2) = 18 + 6 = 24
According to the distributive property, 3 can be multiplied with 6 and 2 separately, then add the products to get the final answer.
Hiralee Lalitkumar Makwana has almost two years of teaching experience. She is a number ninja as she loves numbers. Her interest in numbers can be seen in the way she cracks math puzzles and hidden patterns.
: She loves to read number jokes and games.