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Definition

Degree of a Polynomial

The degree of a polynomial is the highest degree among all of its individual terms. To find it, first determine the degree of each term by summing the exponents of its variables, then select the greatest value. For example, in the trinomial 6m4m3n2+8mn56m^4 - m^3n^2 + 8mn^5, the three terms have degrees 4, 5, and 6 respectively, so the degree of the polynomial is 6. Similarly, 4x4+x3+8x29x+14x^4 + x^3 + 8x^2 - 9x + 1 has term degrees 4, 3, 2, 1, and 0, making the polynomial's degree 4.

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Updated 2026-04-30

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