Which ones to learn by heart
- Squares up to 30 and cubes up to 15. They come up all the time, and spotting 729 or 841 straight away saves real time in physics numericals.
- Square roots of 2, 3, 5 and 7: 1.414, 1.732, 2.236 and 2.646. Most other roots come from these: √50 = 5√2 ≈ 7.07.
Quick tricks for squares
- Ending in 5: multiply the first digit by the next number, then write 25. 35² = (3 × 4) and 25 = 1225.
- Near 50: for 50 + d, the square is (25 + d) hundred plus d². 53² = 2800 + 9 = 2809.
- Near 100: for 100 − d, the square is (100 − 2d) hundred plus d². 97² = 9400 + 9 = 9409.
Need logs instead? See the log table.
Square roots, worked out
√2 · √3 · √5 · √6 · √7 · √8 · √10 · √11 · √12 · √13 · √14 · √15 · √17 · √18 · √19 · √20 · √21 · √22 · √23 · √24 · √26 · √27 · √28 · √29 · √30 · √31 · √32 · √33 · √34 · √35 · √37 · √38 · √39 · √40 · √41 · √42 · √43 · √44 · √45 · √46 · √47 · √48 · √50 · √72 · √75 · √80 · √98 · √125 · √200
Questions students ask
What is the square root of 2?
1.414 (more exactly 1.41421). √3 is 1.732 and √5 is 2.236.
Which numbers from 1 to 100 are perfect cubes?
1, 8, 27 and 64.
Which numbers from 1 to 100 are perfect squares?
1, 4, 9, 16, 25, 36, 49, 64, 81 and 100.