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A cube can simply be described as a 3 dimensional square. It has the property that its base, width and height are all the same. If the lengths of the base, width and height were different, the shape would be called a cuboid.

‘To cube a number’ means to multiply a number by itself twice. So 10 cubed would be 10 × 10 × 10 = 1,000. This is the same result as if we were asked to calculate the volume of a cube with a side length of 10, which is where the name comes from.

We write the cube of a number by using a superscript ³. So if we want to say ‘6 cubed’ we would write it as 6³.

Some common cubic numbers are written below:

1³ = 1 × 1 × 1 = 1

2³ = 2 × 2 × 2 = 8

3³ = 3 × 3 × 3 = 27

4³ = 4 × 4 × 4 = 64

5³ = 5 × 5 × 5 = 125