Can you show me why the integral of 1/x is the natural log of x?

We can break this down into steps, going deeper each time. First we might just say: well, since integration is fundamentally the inverse process of differentiation and we know that the derivative of ln(x) is 1/x, then the integral of 1/x must be ln(x).
But hold on... how do we know that d/dx(ln x) = 1/x? Well, looking at ln(x), we cannot differentiate it directly but we do know that its inverse is e^x. Imagining a plot of the function ln(x), we know that inverting it is equivalent to switching round the axes or reflecting in y = x. From this, it is easy to see graphically that the derivative of the inverse function is the inverse of the derivative of the function. So if y = ln(x) : d/dx(ln x) = 1/ d/dy(e^y). However, the derivative of e^y is e^y from the definition of the exponential function and so this simplifies to: d/dx(ln x) = 1/ e^y = 1/x, showing that the integral of 1/x is ln(x).

JL
Answered by James L. Maths tutor

9501 Views

See similar Maths A Level tutors

Related Maths A Level answers

All answers ▸

f(x)= 2x^3 -7x^2 + 2x +3. Given that (x-3) is a factor of f(x), express f(x) in a fully factorised form.


if f(x) = 7x-1 and g(x) = 4/(x-2), solve fg(x) = x


If y=3x^3e^x; find dy/dx?


Express 2 cos x – sin x in the form Rcos( x + a ), where R and a are constants, R > 0 and a is between 0 and 90 ° Give the exact value of R and give the value of to 2 decimal places.


We're here to help

contact us iconContact ustelephone icon+44 (0) 203 773 6020
Facebook logoInstagram logoLinkedIn logo

MyTutor is part of the IXL family of brands:

© 2026 by IXL Learning