Simplify the expression 5y - 2y + 12.

Simplify the expression 5y - 2y + 12.

• A. 3y + 12
• B. 7y + 12
• C. 5y + 12
• D. y + 12

Answer: (A)

Combining like terms is what we’re practicing here. When simplifying, you add or subtract coefficients of terms that have the same variable and exponent. In 5y - 2y + 12, the terms with y are like terms, so you combine 5y and -2y to get 3y. The 12 is a constant and doesn’t have a y, so it stays as +12. Therefore, the expression simplifies to 3y + 12. If you see something like 7y + 12, that would come from treating the subtraction as addition, which isn’t correct here; or 5y + 12 would miss subtracting the 2y, which changes the result.

Combining like terms is what we’re practicing here. When simplifying, you add or subtract coefficients of terms that have the same variable and exponent. In 5y - 2y + 12, the terms with y are like terms, so you combine 5y and -2y to get 3y. The 12 is a constant and doesn’t have a y, so it stays as +12. Therefore, the expression simplifies to 3y + 12. If you see something like 7y + 12, that would come from treating the subtraction as addition, which isn’t correct here; or 5y + 12 would miss subtracting the 2y, which changes the result.