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Simplifying Radical Expressions

Author: Rachel Kaplan

What is a Radical?

Remember, a radical is simply a number with a square root, such as √4 ...which is the same as saying 41/2

Radical expressions are expressions with a radical as one or part of one of the terms. You will see many examples of these throughout the learning packet.

Another skill we will learn is how to rationalize a denominator. This involved making the denominator (bottom) of a fraction rational or, in other words, getting rid of the square root.

  


  

Simplifying Radicals

Rationalize the Denominator

Multiplying by the Conjugate Step by Step

How to multiply a fraction by the conjugate in order to rationalize it and remove the square root from the bottom. A step by step example problem.

Examples

Take a look at this awesome link if you need more practice. It provides all kinds of example problems and also includes step-by-step solutions if you get stuck:

Radical Problems