What is decimal literal in JavaScript?

A decimal literal in JavaScript is a numeric literal that represents a base-10 (decimal) number, which is the most common way we represent numbers in everyday life. It consists of a series of digits (0-9) without any prefix. Decimal literals can be integers or floating-point numbers.

Types of Decimal Literals:

1. Integer Decimal Literal: These are whole numbers without any fractional or decimal part.

Examples: 10, 42, -7, 0

2. Floating-point Decimal Literal: These are numbers that include a decimal point and may have a fractional part. You can also use floating-point notation for large or small numbers.

Examples: 3.14, 0.5, -2.718, 1e6 (which represents 1 * 10^6 or 1000000)

Examples of Decimal Literals:

Integer Decimal Literal:

let a = 10;   // Decimal integer literal
let b = 42;   // Another integer
let c = -5;   // Negative integer

Floating-point Decimal Literal:

let d = 3.14;   // Floating-point literal
let e = 0.5;    // Another floating-point literal
let f = -0.75;  // Negative floating-point literal

Exponential Notation (for large or small floating-point numbers):

let g = 1e6;    // 1 * 10^6, or 1000000
let h = 2.5e-4; // 2.5 * 10^-4, or 0.00025

Characteristics:

• A decimal literal is the default numeric literal in JavaScript when you don't use prefixes like 0x (for hexadecimal), 0b (for binary), or 0o (for octal).
• Decimal literals support both integer and floating-point numbers.

Example Usage:

console.log(10);      // Outputs: 10 (integer)
console.log(3.14);    // Outputs: 3.14 (floating-point)
console.log(2e3);     // Outputs: 2000 (exponential notation)

Decimal vs Other Numeral Systems:

• Decimal literals are base-10 numbers.
• JavaScript also supports other number systems like:
  • Hexadecimal (base-16) with 0x prefix.
  • Binary (base-2) with 0b prefix.
  • Octal (base-8) with 0o prefix.

Now you should understand, decimal literals are the most commonly used numeric literals in JavaScript and represent numbers in base-10, either as integers or floating-point numbers.

Hope it helps.

Support Us