High School

What is the degree of [tex]$7x^6 - 6x^5 + 2x^3 + x - 8$[/tex]?

A. 6
B. 5
C. 7
D. 8

Answer :

To determine the degree of the polynomial [tex]\(7x^6 - 6x^5 + 2x^3 + x - 8\)[/tex], we need to identify the highest power of the variable [tex]\(x\)[/tex] in the expression.

Here's a step-by-step breakdown:

1. Identify each term: The polynomial consists of several terms:
- [tex]\(7x^6\)[/tex]
- [tex]\(-6x^5\)[/tex]
- [tex]\(2x^3\)[/tex]
- [tex]\(x\)[/tex] which is equal to [tex]\(1x^1\)[/tex]
- [tex]\(-8\)[/tex] which can be considered as [tex]\(-8x^0\)[/tex]

2. Look at the exponents of [tex]\(x\)[/tex]: The exponents in the given polynomial are 6, 5, 3, 1, and 0.

3. Determine the highest exponent: Among these exponents, the highest is 6.

Therefore, the degree of the polynomial is 6.

The correct answer is A. 6.