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Example

Finding the Quotient 36x3y2+27x2y29x2y39x2y\frac{36x^3y^2 + 27x^2y^2 - 9x^2y^3}{9x^2y}

Divide a two-variable trinomial by a two-variable monomial: 36x3y2+27x2y29x2y39x2y\frac{36x^3y^2 + 27x^2y^2 - 9x^2y^3}{9x^2y}.

Step 1 — Separate the terms. Split the fraction into three individual fractions, one per term: 36x3y29x2y+27x2y29x2y9x2y39x2y\frac{36x^3y^2}{9x^2y} + \frac{27x^2y^2}{9x^2y} - \frac{9x^2y^3}{9x^2y}.

Step 2 — Simplify each fraction. For the first term: 369=4\frac{36}{9} = 4, x3x2=x32=x\frac{x^3}{x^2} = x^{3-2} = x, and y2y=y21=y\frac{y^2}{y} = y^{2-1} = y, giving 4xy4xy. For the second term: 279=3\frac{27}{9} = 3, x2x2=1\frac{x^2}{x^2} = 1, and y2y=y\frac{y^2}{y} = y, giving 3y3y. For the third term: 99=1\frac{9}{9} = 1, x2x2=1\frac{x^2}{x^2} = 1, and y3y=y31=y2\frac{y^3}{y} = y^{3-1} = y^2, giving y2y^2.

The quotient is 4xy+3yy24xy + 3y - y^2. This example extends the polynomial-by-monomial division procedure to a trinomial with two variables, showing that the same split-then-simplify technique works regardless of how many terms the polynomial has — each separated fraction is simplified as a monomial-by-monomial division.

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Updated 2026-04-21

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