Algebra vocabulary

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What is a variable in algebra?

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A symbol, often a letter, that represents a number that can change or vary.

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What is a coefficient?

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The number that is multiplied by a variable in an algebraic expression.

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What is an expression in algebra?

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A mathematical phrase that can include numbers, variables, and operators, but does not have an equal sign.

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What is a term in an algebraic expression?

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A single part of an expression, which can be a number, a variable, or a combination of both, separated by plus or minus signs.

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What is a constant in algebra?

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A fixed value that does not change.

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What is an equation?

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A mathematical statement that two expressions are equal, indicated by the equal sign.

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What does it mean to simplify an expression?

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To combine like terms and reduce the expression to its simplest form.

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What are like terms?

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Terms that have the same variable raised to the same power.

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What is the distributive property?

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A property that states a(b + c) = ab + ac, allowing you to multiply a single term by each term in a parenthesis.

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What is a polynomial?

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An algebraic expression that consists of one or more terms, where each term is a product of a constant and a variable raised to a non-negative integer power.