Proportionality constant

In mathematics, two variables are proportional if a change in one is always accompanied by a change in the other, and if the changes are always related by use of a constant multiplier. The constant is called the coefficient of proportionality or proportionality constant.

To express the statement "y is directly proportional to x" mathematically, we write an equation y = cx, where c is the proportionality constant. Symbolically, this is written as y ∝ x.

To express the statement "y is inversely proportional to x" mathematically, we write an equation y = c/x. We can equivalently write "y is directly proportional to 1/x".

An equality of two ratios is called a . An example is a/c = b/d where no term is zero.

Given two variables x and y, y is directly proportional to x if there is a non-zero constant k such that

See also: Equals sign

The relation is often denoted, using the ∝ or ~ symbol, as

and the constant ratio

is called the proportionality constant, constant of variation or constant of proportionality.

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