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Simplify: ( 2 x 4 ) 5 ( 4 x 3 ) 2 ( x 3 ) 5 .

2 x

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Divide monomials

You have now been introduced to all the properties of exponents and used them to simplify expressions. Next, you’ll see how to use these properties to divide monomials. Later, you’ll use them to divide polynomials.

Find the quotient: 56 x 7 ÷ 8 x 3 .

Solution

56 x 7 ÷ 8 x 3 Rewrite as a fraction. 56 x 7 8 x 3 Use fraction multiplication. 56 8 x 7 x 3 Simplify and use the Quotient Property. 7 x 4

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Find the quotient: 42 y 9 ÷ 6 y 3 .

7 y 6

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Find the quotient: 48 z 8 ÷ 8 z 2 .

6 z 6

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Find the quotient: 45 a 2 b 3 −5 a b 5 .

Solution

When we divide monomials with more than one variable, we write one fraction for each variable.

45 a 2 b 3 −5 a b 5 Use fraction multiplication. 45 −5 · a 2 a · b 3 b 5 Simplify and use the Quotient Property. −9 · a · 1 b 2 Multiply. 9 a b 2

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Find the quotient: −72 a 7 b 3 8 a 12 b 4 .

9 a 5 b

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Find the quotient: −63 c 8 d 3 7 c 12 d 2 .

−9 d c 4

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Find the quotient: 24 a 5 b 3 48 a b 4 .

Solution

24 a 5 b 3 48 a b 4 Use fraction multiplication. 24 48 · a 5 a · b 3 b 4 Simplify and use the Quotient Property. 1 2 · a 4 · 1 b Multiply. a 4 2 b

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Find the quotient: 16 a 7 b 6 24 a b 8 .

2 a 6 3 b 2

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Find the quotient: 27 p 4 q 7 −45 p 12 q .

3 q 6 5 p 8

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Once you become familiar with the process and have practiced it step by step several times, you may be able to simplify a fraction in one step.

Find the quotient: 14 x 7 y 12 21 x 11 y 6 .

Solution

Be very careful to simplify 14 21 by dividing out a common factor, and to simplify the variables by subtracting their exponents.

14 x 7 y 12 21 x 11 y 6 Simplify and use the Quotient Property. 2 y 6 3 x 4

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Find the quotient: 28 x 5 y 14 49 x 9 y 12 .

4 y 2 7 x 4

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Find the quotient: 30 m 5 n 11 48 m 10 n 14 .

5 8 m 5 n 3

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In all examples so far, there was no work to do in the numerator or denominator before simplifying the fraction. In the next example, we’ll first find the product of two monomials in the numerator before we simplify the fraction. This follows the order of operations. Remember, a fraction bar is a grouping symbol.

Find the quotient: ( 6 x 2 y 3 ) ( 5 x 3 y 2 ) ( 3 x 4 y 5 ) .

Solution

( 6 x 2 y 3 ) ( 5 x 3 y 2 ) ( 3 x 4 y 5 ) Simplify the numerator. 30 x 5 y 5 3 x 4 y 5 Simplify. 10 x

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Find the quotient: ( 6 a 4 b 5 ) ( 4 a 2 b 5 ) 12 a 5 b 8 .

2 a b 2

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Find the quotient: ( −12 x 6 y 9 ) ( −4 x 5 y 8 ) −12 x 10 y 12 .

−4 x y 5

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Access these online resources for additional instruction and practice with dividing monomials:

Key concepts

  • Quotient Property for Exponents:
    • If a is a real number, a 0 , and m , n are whole numbers, then:
      a m a n = a m n , m > n and a m a n = 1 a m n , n > m
  • Zero Exponent
    • If a is a non-zero number, then a 0 = 1 .

  • Quotient to a Power Property for Exponents :
    • If a and b are real numbers, b 0 , and m is a counting number, then:
      ( a b ) m = a m b m
    • To raise a fraction to a power, raise the numerator and denominator to that power.

  • Summary of Exponent Properties
    • If a , b are real numbers and m , n are whole numbers, then
      Product Property a m · a n = a m + n Power Property ( a m ) n = a m · n Product to a Power ( a b ) m = a m b m Quotient Property a m b m = a m n , a 0 , m > n a m a n = 1 a n m , a 0 , n > m Zero Exponent Definition a o = 1 , a 0 Quotient to a Power Property ( a b ) m = a m b m , b 0

Practice makes perfect

Simplify Expressions Using the Quotient Property for Exponents

In the following exercises, simplify.

x 18 x 3 5 12 5 3

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y 20 y 10 7 16 7 2

y 10 7 14

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p 21 p 7 4 16 4 4

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u 24 u 3 9 15 9 5

u 21 9 10

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q 18 q 36 10 2 10 3

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t 10 t 40 8 3 8 5

1 t 30 1 64

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x x 7 10 10 3

1 x 6 1 100

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Simplify Expressions with Zero Exponents

In the following exercises, simplify.


13 0
k 0

1 1

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27 0
( 27 0 )

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15 0
( 15 0 )

−1 −1

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( 25 x ) 0
25 x 0

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( 6 y ) 0
6 y 0

1 6

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( 12 x ) 0
( −56 p 4 q 3 ) 0

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7 y 0 ( 17 y ) 0
( −93 c 7 d 15 ) 0

7 1

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12 n 0 18 m 0
( 12 n ) 0 ( 18 m ) 0

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15 r 0 22 s 0
( 15 r ) 0 ( 22 s ) 0

−7 0

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Simplify Expressions Using the Quotient to a Power Property

In the following exercises, simplify.

( 3 4 ) 3 ( p 2 ) 5 ( x y ) 6

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( 2 5 ) 2 ( x 3 ) 4 ( a b ) 5

4 25 x 4 81 a 5 b 5

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( a 3 b ) 4 ( 5 4 m ) 2

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( x 2 y ) 3 ( 10 3 q ) 4

x 3 8 y 3 10,000 81 q 4

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Simplify Expressions by Applying Several Properties

In the following exercises, simplify.

( y 4 z 10 ) 5

y 20 z 50

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( 3 m 5 5 n ) 3

27 m 15 125 n 3

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( 5 u 7 2 v 3 ) 4

625 u 28 16 v 12

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( t 2 ) 5 ( t 4 ) 2 ( t 3 ) 7

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( q 3 ) 6 ( q 2 ) 3 ( q 4 ) 8

1 q 8

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( −2 p 2 ) 4 ( 3 p 4 ) 2 ( −6 p 3 ) 2

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( −2 k 3 ) 2 ( 6 k 2 ) 4 ( 9 k 4 ) 2

64 k 6

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( −4 m 3 ) 2 ( 5 m 4 ) 3 ( −10 m 6 ) 3

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( −10 n 2 ) 3 ( 4 n 5 ) 2 ( 2 n 8 ) 2

−4,000

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Divide Monomials

In the following exercises, divide the monomials.

−72 u 12 ÷ 1 2 u 4

−6 u 8

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45 a 6 b 8 −15 a 10 b 2

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54 x 9 y 3 −18 x 6 y 15

3 x 3 y 12

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20 m 8 n 4 30 m 5 n 9

−2 m 3 3 n 5

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18 a 4 b 8 −27 a 9 b 5

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45 x 5 y 9 −60 x 8 y 6

−3 y 3 4 x 3

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64 q 11 r 9 s 3 48 q 6 r 8 s 5

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65 a 10 b 8 c 5 42 a 7 b 6 c 8

65 a 3 b 2 42 c 3

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( 10 m 5 n 4 ) ( 5 m 3 n 6 ) 25 m 7 n 5

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( −18 p 4 q 7 ) ( −6 p 3 q 8 ) −36 p 12 q 10

−3 q 5 p 5

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( 6 a 4 b 3 ) ( 4 a b 5 ) ( 12 a 2 b ) ( a 3 b )

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( 4 u 2 v 5 ) ( 15 u 3 v ) ( 12 u 3 v ) ( u 4 v )

5 v 4 u 2

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Mixed Practice


24 a 5 + 2 a 5
24 a 5 2 a 5
24 a 5 · 2 a 5
24 a 5 ÷ 2 a 5

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15 n 10 + 3 n 10
15 n 10 3 n 10
15 n 10 · 3 n 10
15 n 10 ÷ 3 n 10

18 n 10
12 n 10
45 n 20
5

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p 4 · p 6
( p 4 ) 6

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q 5 · q 3
( q 5 ) 3

q 8
q 15

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z 6 z 5
z 5 z 6

z 1 z

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( 8 x 5 ) ( 9 x ) ÷ 6 x 3

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( 4 y ) ( 12 y 7 ) ÷ 8 y 2

6 y 6

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27 a 7 3 a 3 + 54 a 9 9 a 5

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32 c 11 4 c 5 + 42 c 9 6 c 3

15 c 6

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32 y 5 8 y 2 60 y 10 5 y 7

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48 x 6 6 x 4 35 x 9 7 x 7

3 x 2

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63 r 6 s 3 9 r 4 s 2 72 r 2 s 2 6 s

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56 y 4 z 5 7 y 3 z 3 45 y 2 z 2 5 y

y z 2

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Everyday math

Memory One megabyte is approximately 10 6 bytes. One gigabyte is approximately 10 9 bytes. How many megabytes are in one gigabyte?

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Memory One gigabyte is approximately 10 9 bytes. One terabyte is approximately 10 12 bytes. How many gigabytes are in one terabyte?

10 3

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Writing exercises

Jennifer thinks the quotient a 24 a 6 simplifies to a 4 . What is wrong with her reasoning?

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Maurice simplifies the quotient d 7 d by writing d 7 d = 7 . What is wrong with his reasoning?

Answers will vary.

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When Drake simplified 3 0 and ( −3 ) 0 he got the same answer. Explain how using the Order of Operations correctly gives different answers.

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Robert thinks x 0 simplifies to 0. What would you say to convince Robert he is wrong?

Answers will vary.

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Self check

After completing the exercises, use this checklist to evaluate your mastery of the objectives of this section.

This is a table that has six rows and four columns. In the first row, which is a header row, the cells read from left to right “I can…,” “Confidently,” “With some help,” and “No-I don’t get it!” The first column below “I can…” reads “simplify expressions using the Quotient Property for Exponents,” “simplify expressions with zero exponents,” “simplify expressions using the Quotient to a Power Property,” “simplify expressions by applying several properties,” and “divide monomials.” The rest of the cells are blank.

On a scale of 1-10, how would you rate your mastery of this section in light of your responses on the checklist? How can you improve this?

Questions & Answers

how did you get 1640
Noor Reply
If auger is pair are the roots of equation x2+5x-3=0
Peter Reply
Wayne and Dennis like to ride the bike path from Riverside Park to the beach. Dennis’s speed is seven miles per hour faster than Wayne’s speed, so it takes Wayne 2 hours to ride to the beach while it takes Dennis 1.5 hours for the ride. Find the speed of both bikers.
MATTHEW Reply
420
Sharon
from theory: distance [miles] = speed [mph] × time [hours] info #1 speed_Dennis × 1.5 = speed_Wayne × 2 => speed_Wayne = 0.75 × speed_Dennis (i) info #2 speed_Dennis = speed_Wayne + 7 [mph] (ii) use (i) in (ii) => [...] speed_Dennis = 28 mph speed_Wayne = 21 mph
George
Let W be Wayne's speed in miles per hour and D be Dennis's speed in miles per hour. We know that W + 7 = D and W * 2 = D * 1.5. Substituting the first equation into the second: W * 2 = (W + 7) * 1.5 W * 2 = W * 1.5 + 7 * 1.5 0.5 * W = 7 * 1.5 W = 7 * 3 or 21 W is 21 D = W + 7 D = 21 + 7 D = 28
Salma
Devon is 32 32​​ years older than his son, Milan. The sum of both their ages is 54 54​. Using the variables d d​ and m m​ to represent the ages of Devon and Milan, respectively, write a system of equations to describe this situation. Enter the equations below, separated by a comma.
Aaron Reply
find product (-6m+6) ( 3m²+4m-3)
SIMRAN Reply
-42m²+60m-18
Salma
what is the solution
bill
how did you arrive at this answer?
bill
-24m+3+3mÁ^2
Susan
i really want to learn
Amira
I only got 42 the rest i don't know how to solve it. Please i need help from anyone to help me improve my solving mathematics please
Amira
Hw did u arrive to this answer.
Aphelele
hi
Bajemah
-6m(3mA²+4m-3)+6(3mA²+4m-3) =-18m²A²-24m²+18m+18mA²+24m-18 Rearrange like items -18m²A²-24m²+42m+18A²-18
Salma
complete the table of valuesfor each given equatio then graph. 1.x+2y=3
Jovelyn Reply
x=3-2y
Salma
y=x+3/2
Salma
Hi
Enock
given that (7x-5):(2+4x)=8:7find the value of x
Nandala
3x-12y=18
Kelvin
please why isn't that the 0is in ten thousand place
Grace Reply
please why is it that the 0is in the place of ten thousand
Grace
Send the example to me here and let me see
Stephen
A meditation garden is in the shape of a right triangle, with one leg 7 feet. The length of the hypotenuse is one more than the length of one of the other legs. Find the lengths of the hypotenuse and the other leg
Marry Reply
how far
Abubakar
cool u
Enock
state in which quadrant or on which axis each of the following angles given measure. in standard position would lie 89°
Abegail Reply
hello
BenJay
hi
Method
I am eliacin, I need your help in maths
Rood
how can I help
Sir
hmm can we speak here?
Amoon
however, may I ask you some questions about Algarba?
Amoon
hi
Enock
what the last part of the problem mean?
Roger
The Jones family took a 15 mile canoe ride down the Indian River in three hours. After lunch, the return trip back up the river took five hours. Find the rate, in mph, of the canoe in still water and the rate of the current.
cameron Reply
Shakir works at a computer store. His weekly pay will be either a fixed amount, $925, or $500 plus 12% of his total sales. How much should his total sales be for his variable pay option to exceed the fixed amount of $925.
mahnoor Reply
I'm guessing, but it's somewhere around $4335.00 I think
Lewis
12% of sales will need to exceed 925 - 500, or 425 to exceed fixed amount option. What amount of sales does that equal? 425 ÷ (12÷100) = 3541.67. So the answer is sales greater than 3541.67. Check: Sales = 3542 Commission 12%=425.04 Pay = 500 + 425.04 = 925.04. 925.04 > 925.00
Munster
difference between rational and irrational numbers
Arundhati Reply
When traveling to Great Britain, Bethany exchanged $602 US dollars into £515 British pounds. How many pounds did she receive for each US dollar?
Jakoiya Reply
how to reduced echelon form
Solomon Reply
Jazmine trained for 3 hours on Saturday. She ran 8 miles and then biked 24 miles. Her biking speed is 4 mph faster than her running speed. What is her running speed?
Zack Reply
d=r×t the equation would be 8/r+24/r+4=3 worked out
Sheirtina

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Source:  OpenStax, Elementary algebra. OpenStax CNX. Jan 18, 2017 Download for free at http://cnx.org/content/col12116/1.2
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