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Is there a definitive guide to speaking mathematics?

This may be an incredibly stupid question, but I was wondering how would one pronounce simple mathematical equations and expressions out loud? I am often in the situation that I am trying to explain something in math to someone out loud and struggling with how to say it.


For parentheses, I often use pauses to emphasize the order for calculation.

For example, for

$$x-(x+1)$$

I would generally read this as "x minus (pause) x plus 1". The faults of this method are clear, and it does not work very well, because some might think I am saying.

$$x-x+1$$

Similarly, it is confusing to pronounce $\sqrt{ab}+c$ over $\sqrt{ab+c}$, $a^{b-1}$ over $a^b-1$, etc.

Another way I have tried more recently is to say "bracket" and "end bracket," so the above would be read as "x minus, bracket, x plus 1, end bracket." This method seems to work, but I was wondering if anyone has a better solution then this.


Also, I was wondering on the pronunciation of subscripts. I generally pronounce $a_b$ as "a sub b" but I hear many other people call this simply "ab" (which is confusion because that is how I would pronounce $ab$).

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    Pronouncing $a_b$ as "a b" makes more sense if $a$ is a symbol but $b$ is a number, e.g. I would not hesitate to refer to a Fibonacci number $F_5$ as "eff five." The other expressions I would try to avoid reading out loud at all.2012-05-28
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    Mathematics is *very* visual. That's why we ask that people post in TeX. One *can*, with great effort, *dictate* short formulas over the phone. Can sort of expect people to get the right formula, can't expect them to understand it.2012-05-28
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    [How can we speak math?](http://www.cs.berkeley.edu/~fateman/papers/speakmath.pdf)2012-05-28
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    What kind of situation are you in where you're struggling to describe mathematical formulas in words but you're not with someone else (where you can just *point* to what you are referring to)? As for the issue of pronouncing $a_n$, both "a enn" and "a sub enn" are common. Frankly from *context* it is clear what you should mean when you say "a enn". If the other person is really baffled and thinks "a enn" means "$an$" when you meant "$a_n$", I'd be intrigued to hear what such a context could be.2012-05-29
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    Saying "$x$ minus bracket $x$ plus 1, end bracket" sounds very weird.2012-05-29
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    One way I attempt to avoid ambiguity: 'x minus the quantity x + 1.'2012-06-16
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    I think you don't really need to be that effective, unless you're trying to explain it to people with serious visual impairments. When explaining to someone, you can use gestures, and in case of confusion you can immediately clear up any problems. And in any case, except for ad-hoc stuff, you really ought to get a piece of paper or a blackboard if you plan on using any complicated expressions. Mathematics can be quite effectively done verbally, with some imagination. Calculations -- not really. Not for most people.2012-07-07

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