Number

A number is a mathematical object used to count, measure, and label. The most basic examples are the natural numbers: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and so forth. Individual numbers can be represented in language with number words or by dedicated symbols called numerals; for example, "five" is a number word and "5" is the corresponding numeral. As only a limited list of symbols can be memorized, a numeral system is used to represent any number in an organized way. The most common representation is the Hindu–Arabic numeral system, which can display any non-negative integer using a combination of ten symbols, called numerical digits. Numerals can be used for counting, labels, for ordering, and for codes. In common usage, a numeral is not clearly distinguished from the number that it represents.