Like Terms

Two or more terms in an algebraic expression are like terms if they have the same variable(s) with the same exponent(s). 7xy+2x-3xy-2x^2+x+5x^2 In this expression, there are three sets of like terms — namely, xy-terms, x-terms, and x^2-terms.

Note that all constants are like terms. Like terms in an expression can be combined by using addition or subtraction to rewrite the expression in simplest form.