High School

Which expression is equivalent to [tex]pq[/tex]?

A. [tex]p + q[/tex]
B. [tex]p - q[/tex]
C. [tex]\frac{p}{q}[/tex]
D. [tex]qp[/tex]

Answer :

To determine which expression is equivalent to [tex]\( p q \)[/tex], let's look at each of the options provided:

1. [tex]\( p + q \)[/tex]: This expression represents the addition of [tex]\( p \)[/tex] and [tex]\( q \)[/tex]. It is not equivalent to the multiplication of [tex]\( p \)[/tex] and [tex]\( q \)[/tex].

2. [tex]\( p - q \)[/tex]: This expression represents the subtraction of [tex]\( q \)[/tex] from [tex]\( p \)[/tex]. It is also not equivalent to the multiplication of [tex]\( p \)[/tex] and [tex]\( q \)[/tex].

3. [tex]\( \frac{p}{q} \)[/tex]: This expression represents the division of [tex]\( p \)[/tex] by [tex]\( q \)[/tex]. It does not match the multiplication operation [tex]\( p q \)[/tex].

4. [tex]\( q p \)[/tex]: This expression represents the multiplication of [tex]\( q \)[/tex] and [tex]\( p \)[/tex]. In multiplication, the order of the factors doesn't matter (due to the commutative property), so [tex]\( q p \)[/tex] is equivalent to [tex]\( p q \)[/tex].

Therefore, the expression that is equivalent to [tex]\( p q \)[/tex] is [tex]\( q p \)[/tex].