The absolute difference of two real numbers x, y is given by |x − y|, the absolute value of their difference. It describes the distance on the real line between the points corresponding to x and y. It is a special case of the Lp distance for all 1 ≤ p ≤ ∞ and is the standard metric used for both the set of rational numbers Q and their completion, the set of real numbers R. The absolute difference of two real numbers x, y is given by |x − y|, the absolute value of their difference. It describes the distance on the real line between the points corresponding to x and y. It is a special case of the Lp distance for all 1 ≤ p ≤ ∞ and is the standard metric used for both the set of rational numbers Q and their completion, the set of real numbers R.