What does subset mean?
Word: Subset
Part of Speech: Noun
Meaning: Subset means a smaller group made of some members of a bigger group. In maths, a set is a subset of another set when all its members belong to that bigger set.
How do you spell subset?
Syllables: sub - set
Tricky part: Nothing changes where the two parts meet, so the word ends in a single t. Children sometimes double it (subsett) or write sabset.
Watch out for: subsett, sabset, subsit
Memory tip: A subset is a smaller group tucked inside a bigger one, like the even numbers inside all the whole numbers. Its last letter is one plain t.
Subset in a sentence
Example 1: Even numbers are a subset of whole numbers.
Example 2: A subset of our class, the six fastest runners, will run the relay.
Example 3: In maths class, we wrote down every subset of a set with two members.
Fun Fact
A set with 3 members has 8 subsets in all, if you count the empty set and the whole set itself.
Practise the CREST Way
Spellacadabra
Choose the correct option to make a meaningful word:
su_set
a) bb
b) b
c) p
d) pp
Show answer
b) b. The first part is sub, with one b, as in subway.
Spell Spies
Choose the incorrectly spelt word:
a) number
b) tottal
c) subset
d) divide
Show answer
b) tottal. Total has only one t in the middle.
Word Champ
Which of the words cannot be made using the letters in the given word?
subset
a) sunset
b) bets
c) tube
d) stubs
Show answer
a) sunset. Sunset needs an n, a letter subset does not have.
Jumble Tumble
What is the meaning of the word that can be formed from the given letters?
esbuts
a) the answer you get when you add
b) a straight line joining two points
c) a number bigger than all the others
d) part of a group, chosen from a bigger one
Show answer
d) part of a group, chosen from a bigger one. The six letters make subset, a group taken from inside a bigger group.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Which group is a subset of the vowels a, e, i, o, u?
a) b, c
b) x, y
c) a, e
d) a, b
Show answer
c) a, e
2. Ten children are in a club and four of them play chess. Which is a subset of the club?
a) the children in another club
b) the four chess players
c) the teachers of the school
d) all children in the school
Show answer
b) the four chess players
