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 solve the question of which expression is equivalent to [tex]\( pq \)[/tex], let's examine the options given:

1. [tex]\( p+q \)[/tex]
2. [tex]\( p-q \)[/tex]
3. [tex]\( \frac{p}{q} \)[/tex]
4. [tex]\( qp \)[/tex]

The expression [tex]\( pq \)[/tex] involves multiplication between [tex]\( p \)[/tex] and [tex]\( q \)[/tex]. An important property of multiplication is that it is commutative. This means that the order of the numbers being multiplied does not affect the result; [tex]\( pq \)[/tex] is the same as [tex]\( qp \)[/tex].

Let's go through the options:

- Option 1: [tex]\( p+q \)[/tex] - This represents addition, which is different from multiplication. Therefore, this is not equivalent to [tex]\( pq \)[/tex].

- Option 2: [tex]\( p-q \)[/tex] - This represents subtraction, which is also different from multiplication. Thus, this is not equivalent to [tex]\( pq \)[/tex].

- Option 3: [tex]\( \frac{p}{q} \)[/tex] - This represents division, which is not equivalent to multiplication. So, this is not the correct choice.

- Option 4: [tex]\( qp \)[/tex] - Since multiplication is commutative, [tex]\( qp \)[/tex] is indeed equivalent to [tex]\( pq \)[/tex].

Therefore, the equivalent expression to [tex]\( pq \)[/tex] is [tex]\( qp \)[/tex]. The correct choice is option 4.