An irreflexive relation is a binary relation on a set where no element is related to itself. In simpler terms, for every element 'a' in the set, the pair (a, a) does not belong to the relation. This property differentiates irreflexive relations from reflexive ones, where elements can be related to themselves. Understanding irreflexive relations helps in exploring other properties of binary relations, such as symmetry and transitivity, as well as their applications in various mathematical contexts.
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