associativity

/əˌsoʊʃiəˈtɪvɪti/
noun
  1. The property in mathematics and computing that the way numbers or operations are grouped does not change the final result (e.g., (a + b) + c = a + (b + c)).
    • The programmer checked that the function had associativity before using it in parallel processing.
    • In group theory, associativity is one of the four basic requirements.
    • Associativity is a key property of addition and multiplication in arithmetic.
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