Properties of Expressions

Front

What is the Commutative Property?

Back

The Commutative Property states that the order of numbers does not affect the sum or product. For example, a + b = b + a and a x b = b x a.

Front

Provide an example of the Commutative Property.

Back

3 + x = x + 3 is an example of the Commutative Property.

Front

What is the Associative Property?

Back

The Associative Property states that the way numbers are grouped does not change their sum or product. For example, (a + b) + c = a + (b + c) and (a x b) x c = a x (b x c).

Front

Provide an example of the Associative Property.

Back

(y + 2) + 4 = y + (2 + 4) is an example of the Associative Property.

Front

What is the Distributive Property?

Back

The Distributive Property states that a number multiplied by a sum is equal to the sum of the individual products. For example, a x (b + c) = a x b + a x c.

Front

Provide an example of the Distributive Property.

Back

4(2a + 7) = 8a + 28 is an example of the Distributive Property.

Front

What does it mean if an expression is simplified?

Back

Simplifying an expression means to reduce it to its simplest form, combining like terms and eliminating unnecessary parentheses.

Front

What are like terms?

Back

Like terms are terms that have the same variable raised to the same power. For example, 3x and 5x are like terms.

Front

What is a variable in mathematics?

Back

A variable is a symbol, often a letter, that represents a number in an expression or equation.

Front

What is an expression?

Back

An expression is a combination of numbers, variables, and operations (like addition and multiplication) that represents a value.