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Mathematics 18 Online
OpenStudy (anonymous):

What is the degree of the polynomial -4x^3 + 2x^2y - 5xy^4?

OpenStudy (anonymous):

because 4 is highest power

OpenStudy (compassionate):

Hi, the degree of a polynomial is it's highest power. You want to rearrange it from the highest power to the lowest power. Therefore... \[-5xy^4 - 4x^3 + 2x^2y\] We know the highest power is four, but what would we call that in terms of degrees?

OpenStudy (anonymous):

Thank you! I just wanted some confirmation that I was doing it right. My teacher said to look for the value of the largest exponent, which would be 4.

OpenStudy (compassionate):

Right, but "4" itself would not be correct. You would say, "This is a polynomial to the fourth degree."

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