Metric ($d$)

A metric on a set $X$ is a function $d:X\times X\to [0,\infty )$ satisfying, for every $x,y,z\in X$:

A metric equips its underlying set with a metric space structure; the distance function and the space carrying it are distinct concepts. The second requirement distinguishes a metric from a pseudometric, which may identify distinct elements at zero distance. The symmetry requirement also explains why directed travel times, such as uphill versus downhill times, need not define a metric.

A tempting alternative on the real numbers is $d(x,y)=(x-y{)}^2$. It is nonnegative, symmetric, and zero exactly on equal endpoints, but fails the triangle inequality: $d(0,2)=4>1+1=d(0,1)+d(1,2)$. Checking only the first three requirements would miss the failure.

The increasing function $\varphi (s)=s/(1+s)$ is subadditive on nonnegative arguments: each summand $b/(1+b)$ and $c/(1+c)$ is at least its numerator divided by $1+b+c$. Thus $\varphi \circ d$ is a metric whenever $d$ is. It is bounded and induces the same topology because $\varphi$ and its inverse near zero preserve convergence to zero.

A metric is compatible with a given topology when its open balls generate exactly that topology. Compatible metrics on a compact topological space are uniformly equivalent: the identity maps between the resulting compact metric spaces are uniformly continuous. Consequently they define the same proximality and the same asymptotic-pair relation for a fixed continuous map.

This metric identifies $\mathbb{R}$ isometrically with the open interval $(-\pi /2,\pi /2)$ in the usual real distance. It induces the usual topology but is incomplete: the integer sequence has transformed limit $\pi /2$ outside that interval. This illustrates that completeness depends on the metric, not solely on its topology.

The discrete metric sets $d(x,x)=0$ and $d(x,y)=1$ for distinct points. It induces the discrete topology, and its Cauchy sequences are exactly the eventually constant sequences.

Every nonempty set equipped with the discrete metric is a bounded set, even if it is an infinite set. For $0<r<1$, both the open ball and closed ball about $a$ are the singleton $\{a\}$. At $r=1$, the open ball is still $\{a\}$, but the closed ball is the whole space; for $r>1$, both are the whole space. Every subset is both an open set and a closed set. Consequently the boundary of the radius-one closed ball is empty, even though every point other than $a$ is at distance exactly one. Also, the closure of $B_d(a,1)$ is $\{a\}$, rather than the radius-one closed ball.

A pseudometric satisfies the axioms of a metric except that distinct points may have distance zero.

Zero distance in a pseudometric defines an equivalence relation: the triangle inequality proves transitivity. If $x$ and $x^{\prime }$ have zero distance, as do $y$ and $y^{\prime }$, the triangle inequality in both directions gives $d(x,y)=d(x^{\prime },y^{\prime })$. Thus distance descends to the quotient and becomes a metric, since zero quotient distance means the classes coincide.

An ultrametric is a metric satisfying the strong triangle inequality

The metric induced by the L1 norm gives taxicab geometry. Each difference in Cartesian coordinates contributes its absolute value independently, so an axis-aligned route with no backtracking realizes the endpoint distance.

The metric induced by the maximum norm measures the largest difference in Cartesian coordinates. Simultaneous changes of Cartesian coordinates cost only as much as the slowest coordinate requires.