sign error
Flipped positive or negative
A sign error is a mistake where a positive value becomes negative or vice versa—getting the direction right but the sign wrong.
Common in mathematics and science, it's the kind of error that makes your answer exactly opposite what it should be: The rocket equation was correct except for a sign error that reversed the thrust direction.
Sign errors are notoriously easy to make and hard to catch.
- minusSubtraction symbol
- negativeOpposite of affirmative
- calculationMathematical problem-solving process
- mental mathNumerical computation done internally
- algebraMath using symbols
arithmetic · blunder · miscalculation · equation · homework · show your work · derivative · integral · opposite · flip · careless · mistake · typo · grade · red pen · partial credit · physics · propagate
- calculation errorsmiscalculation, miscount, miscounting, wrong answer, division by zero
- data errorstypo, data loss, misspelling, duplicate entries, typos
- software bugsbug, glitch, defect, fault, flaw
- mistakesmistake, mistakes, slip, blunder, blunders
- Input Errorstypo, misspelling, misclick, wrong key, fat finger