Question

Brendan says that the negative of -1/3

is 3 because they are on opposite sides of zero when they are plotted on the number line. Is Brendan correct?

Answer 1

No.

Explanation:

Brendan is incorrect.

The negative of -1/3 is 1/3.

For two numbers to be opposites, or negatives of each other, the numbers must have the same absolute value. Only the signs are different.

Answer 2

He is not, 3 is the opposite side AND the reciprocal of -1/3. If it were the opposite side, it would just be 1/3.