Video Transcript
Which of the following is equal to negative five squared? Is it (A) 25, (B) negative 25, (C) negative 10, (D) one twenty-fifth, or (E) negative one twenty-fifth.
We recall that when we are squaring a number, we need to multiply it by itself. In this question, we need to square five and then take the negative of this number. Five squared or five multiplied by five is equal to 25. This means that the negative of five squared is negative 25. The correct answer is option (B).
It is important to note that this question is not asking us to square negative five. If this was the case, the negative five would be in parentheses or brackets. We would then have to multiply negative five by negative five. As multiplying two negatives gives a positive answer, this would be equal to 25. Recognizing and understanding the difference between these two questions is important using the order of operations.