Identifying the Parts of an Expression TERMS Each

TERMS Each expression is made up of terms. A term can be a number,

VARIABLES A variable is a symbol assigned to an unknown value. It is usually

COEFFICIENTS AND VARIABLE PARTS In a term like 7 x , there are two

In the term 4 y, what is the coefficient? What is the variable?

COEFFICIENT of 1 If you don't ‘see’ a coefficient, then it is 1. That

CONSTANTS A term like “ 2” that has no variable part is called a

CONVENTIONAL WAY TO WRITE TERMS In any term, it is conventional to write the

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Identifying the Parts of an Expression

TERMS Each expression is made up of terms. A term can be a number, a variable, or a constant multiplied by a variable or variables. Each term in an algebraic expression is separated by + or – sign. 5 x + 3 y + 8 What are the terms? The terms are 5 x, 3 y and 8.

VARIABLES A variable is a symbol assigned to an unknown value. It is usually represented with letters such as x, y, or t. Variables are lower case letters!

COEFFICIENTS AND VARIABLE PARTS In a term like 7 x , there are two parts: the numerical part and the variable part Coefficient Variable The numerical part is given a special name—it is called the coefficient.

In the term 4 y, what is the coefficient? What is the variable? 4 is the coefficient and y is the variable. In the term 17 x, what is the coefficient? What is the variable? 17 is the coefficient and x is the variable.

COEFFICIENT of 1 If you don't ‘see’ a coefficient, then it is 1. That is, x has a coefficient of 1. Also, x 2 has a coefficient 1. It's never necessary to write a coefficient of 1, because multiplication by 1 doesn't change anything.

CONSTANTS A term like “ 2” that has no variable part is called a constant term, because it is constant—it never changes. It have a fixed value.

CONVENTIONAL WAY TO WRITE TERMS In any term, it is conventional to write the numerical coefficient first. You should write 4 x, not x 4.