This key facts covers What Are Surds? within Surds for GCSE Mathematics. Revise Surds in Number for GCSE Mathematics with 14 exam-style questions and 22 flashcards. This is a high-frequency topic, so it is worth revising until the explanation feels precise and repeatable. It is section 2 of 15 in this topic. Use this key facts to connect the idea to the wider topic before moving on to questions and flashcards.
Topic position
Section 2 of 15
Practice
14 questions
Recall
22 flashcards
What Are Surds?
- Definition: Surds are irrational roots that cannot simplify to whole numbers
- Examples: √2, √3, √5, ∛7 (but NOT √4 = 2 or √9 = 3)
- Why use them? They're exact values (√2 is exact, 1.414... is approximate)
- Irrational: Cannot be written as a fraction a/b
- Infinite decimals: Non-repeating, non-terminating
Keep building this topic
Read this section alongside the surrounding pages in Surds. That gives you the full topic sequence instead of a single isolated revision point.
Practice Questions for Surds
Which of these is the simplified form of √48?
Explain why it is preferable to write fractions in rationalized form rather than leaving a surd in the denominator.
Quick Recall Flashcards
14 questions on Surds — practise free
Instant marking, adaptive difficulty, and 22 spaced repetition flashcards. Free until your GCSEs.
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