Question

Name the reciprocal of each number.

$-\frac{1}{2}$

Short answer

The reciprocal is –2.

Step-by-step solution

Step 1. Concept of reciprocal.

When 1 is divided by a real number then it’s called reciprocal of that real number. Reciprocal is also called multiplicative inverse.

Step 2. Example.

Assume x is a real number then its reciprocal will be $\frac{1}{x}$.

Step 3. Evaluate the reciprocal.

$\begin{array}{l}=\frac{1}{\left(-\frac{1}{2}\right)}\\ =-2\end{array}$

Therefore, the reciprocal of the number is –2.