Algebraic Expressions

Introduction

To evaluate an algebraic expression means to find the value of the expression when the variable is replaced by a given number. To evaluate an expression, we substitute the given number for the variable in the expression, and then simplify the expression using the order of operations.

Algebraic expressions are made up of terms. A term is a constant or the product of a constant and one or more variables. Some examples of terms are $7,y,5x2,9a,$ and $13xy$. The constant that multiplies the variable(s) in a term is called the coefficient. We can think of the coefficient as the number in front of the variable. The coefficient of the term 3x is 3. When we write x, the coefficient is 1, since x=1⋅x.

Resources

• Evaluate, Simplify, and Translate Expressions, OpenStax
• Evaluate and Simplify Algebraic Expressions, Lumen Learning
• Evaluating Algebraic Expressions, Palm Beach State College