Adding 3√2 + 5√8 - √32

Algebra 1 · Axiom Academy

Simplify each radical to uncover a common radicand, then combine like terms. Simplify by writing each radical in simplest form, then combining the like radicals. Nice work — you simplified each radical, lined up a common radicand, and combined the like terms. Simplify first: Pull out the largest perfect-square factor of each radicand before adding — and . Like radicals combine like terms: Once every term shares , you add their coefficients just as 3x + 10x - 4x = 9x . Coefficients multiply, the radical stays: — multiply the numbers, keep unchanged. The same routine handles any sum of radicals: simplify, find the shared radicand, then add the coefficients.

This is the written version of the interactive lesson above. See the full Algebra 1 course.