An inequality is an expression that tells you that two values are not equal to each other.

There are a number of different symbols that tell you that two numbers are unequal, and which may describe the ways in which they differ from each other.

For example,

1. \(x \neq y\) simply tells us that \(x\) is not equal to \(y\)
2. \(x
3. \(x > y\) tells us that \(x\) is greater than \(y\)
4. \(x \leq y\) tells us that \(x\) is less than or equal to \(y\)
5. \(x \geq y\) tells us that \(x\) is greater than or equal to \(y\)

The symbols in 2. and 3. above are referred to as strict inequalities because they don't allow the two numbers to be equal.