Why Does The Distributive Property Work?

When you distribute something, you are dividing it into parts. In math, the distributive property

helps simplify difficult problems because it breaks down expressions into the sum or difference of two numbers

.

How does the distributive property work?

To “distribute” means to divide something or give a share or part of something. According to the distributive property,

multiplying the sum of two or more addends by a number will give the same result as multiplying each addend individually by the number and then adding the products together

.

What is the purpose of the distributive property?

The distributive property tells

us how to solve expressions in the form of a(b + c)

. The distributive property is sometimes called the distributive law of multiplication and division.

Does the distributive property work for exponents?

Distributive Property of Exponents

If an exponent acts on single term in parentheses, we

can distribute the exponent over the term

. … If an exponent acts on multiple terms in parentheses (i.e. if there is a “+” or “-” sign in the parentheses), it cannot be distributed: (5 + 3)

²

≠5

²

+3

²

and (4a + b)

²

≠a

²

+ b

²

.

Is distributive property a property of equality?

The distributive property states that

the product of an expression and a sum is equal to the sum of the products of the expression and each term in the sum

. For example, a(b+c)=ab+ac.

What does distributive property mean in math?

According to the distributive property of multiplication, when we multiply a number with the sum of two or more addends,

we get a result that is equal to the result that is obtained when we multiply each addend separately by the number

.

What is distributive property give example?

The distributive property of multiplication over addition is applied when you multiply a value by a sum. For example,

you want to multiply 5 by the sum of 10 + 3

. As we have like terms, we usually first add the numbers and then multiply by 5.

What comes first distributive property of exponents?

Distributive property with exponents

Multiply (distribute) the

first numbers of each set

, outer numbers of each set, inner numbers of each set, and the last numbers of each set.

What is the distributive rule for quotients?

It is called the distributive rule because the exponent is distributed to all the bases in the (). When

two exponential powers have the same base and are being divided, you subtract the exponents and keep the same base

. Any thing to the zero power equals one.

What is the reflexive property examples?

This property tells us

that any number is equal to itself

. For example, 3 is equal to 3. We use this property to help us solve problems where we need to make operations on just one side of the equation to find out what the other side equals.

What are the 4 properties of equality?

• The Reflexive Property. a =a.
• The Symmetric Property. If a=b, then b=a.
• The Transitive Property. If a=b and b=c, then a=c.
• The Substitution Property. If a=b, then a can be substituted for b in any equation.
• The Addition and Subtraction Properties. …
• The Multiplication Properties. …
• The Division Properties. …
• The Square Roots Property*

What does reflexive property look like?

Defining the Reflexive Property of Equality

You are

seeing an image of yourself

. You could look at the reflexive property of equality as when a number looks across an equal sign and sees a mirror image of itself! Reflexive pretty much means something relating to itself.

What is the distributive property 3rd grade math?

The distributive property says that when

you multiply a factor by two addends, you can first multiply the factor with each addend, and then add the sum

.