Place Value to Thousands

What You'll Learn

• Each digit in a number has a PLACE that gives it its value
• The places from right to left are: ones, tens, hundreds, thousands
• In 2,547: the 2 is thousands, the 5 is hundreds, the 4 is tens, the 7 is ones
• A digit in the tens place is worth 10 times more than the same digit in the ones place
• Place value helps us read, write, compare, and round big numbers
• You can build numbers using place value blocks: small cubes for ones, rods for tens, flats for hundreds, big cubes for thousands

Words to Know

Place value

The value of a digit based on its position in a number

"In 257, the 2 has a place value of 200."

Ones place

The rightmost position, worth 1 each

"In 257, the 7 is in the ones place."

Tens place

Worth 10 each, second from right

"In 257, the 5 is in the tens place, worth 50."

Hundreds place

Worth 100 each, third from right

"In 257, the 2 is in the hundreds place, worth 200."

Thousands place

Worth 1,000 each, fourth from right

"In 2,547, the 2 is in the thousands place."

Placeholder

Zero holding an empty spot so other digits stay in place

"In 4,208, the 0 is a placeholder in the tens place."

Check What You Learned

Fun Facts

• Each digit in a number has a place value based on its position

  Source: CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.3.NBT.A.1

• The places from right to left are: ones, tens, hundreds, thousands

  Source: CCSS / math textbooks

• Each place is 10 times bigger than the one to its right — this is called the base-10 system

  Source: CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.4.NBT.A.1

• In 2,547: the 2 is worth 2,000, the 5 is worth 500, the 4 is worth 40, the 7 is worth 7

  Source: math textbooks

• Zero is a placeholder — it holds an empty place so other digits stay in the correct positions

  Source: math textbooks

• A comma separates thousands from hundreds: 4,208 means 4 thousand 2 hundred eight

  Source: CCSS