The term "commutative" refers to a property in mathematics where the order of numbers does not affect the result of an operation. This property is commonly associated with addition and multiplication. For example, in addition, 2 + 3 equals 3 + 2, both resulting in 5. Similarly, for multiplication, 4 × 5 is the same as 5 × 4, both equaling 20. In contrast, not all operations are commutative. For instance, subtraction and division do not follow this property. For example, 5 - 2 is not the same as 2 - 5, and 10 ÷ 2 is different from 2 ÷ 10. Understanding the commutative property helps in simplifying mathematical expressions and solving equations efficiently.