To compare \(\sqrt{81}\) and \(\sqrt{88}\), we can start by calculating the square root of 81:
\[ \sqrt{81} = 9 \]
Next, we approximate \(\sqrt{88}\). Since \(88\) is between \(81\) (which is \(9^2\)) and \(100\) (which is \(10^2\)), we know that:
\[ 9 < \sqrt{88} < 10 \]
To get a better approximation for \(\sqrt{88}\), we can calculate:
\[ \sqrt{88} \approx 9.38 \quad (\text{since } 9.38^2 \approx 88) \]
Now we have:
\[ \sqrt{81} = 9 \quad \text{and} \quad \sqrt{88} \approx 9.38 \]
Since \(9 < 9.38\), we conclude that:
\[ \sqrt{81} < \sqrt{88} \]
So the equality statement comparing \(\sqrt{81}\) and \(\sqrt{88}\) is:
\[ \sqrt{81} < \sqrt{88} \]