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Example

Classifying Polynomials as Monomial, Binomial, Trinomial, or Polynomial

To classify a polynomial, count its terms and apply the standard naming convention:

  • 4y28y64y^2 - 8y - 6 has 3 terms → trinomial
  • 5a4b2-5a^4b^2 has 1 term → monomial
  • 2x55x39x2+3x+42x^5 - 5x^3 - 9x^2 + 3x + 4 has 5 terms → polynomial (no special name)
  • 135m313 - 5m^3 has 2 terms → binomial
  • qq has 1 term → monomial

The classification depends solely on how many terms the expression contains: one term means monomial, two terms means binomial, three terms means trinomial, and four or more terms means it is simply called a polynomial.

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Updated 2026-04-29

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