A number that is added to another number in an addition problem. In the expression 5 + 3 = 8, both 5 and 3 are addends.
From Latin 'addendum' meaning 'something to be added,' from the verb 'addere' (to add). The mathematical usage emerged in the 19th century as educators sought precise terminology for arithmetic operations.
The word 'addend' beautifully captures the democratic nature of addition - each number contributes equally to the sum, which is why we can rearrange addends in any order (commutative property) and still get the same result! This simple concept underlies the fundamental counting systems that enabled human civilization to develop trade, architecture, and eventually all of mathematics.
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