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Given a complex rational expression, simplify it.

  1. Combine the expressions in the numerator into a single rational expression by adding or subtracting.
  2. Combine the expressions in the denominator into a single rational expression by adding or subtracting.
  3. Rewrite as the numerator divided by the denominator.
  4. Rewrite as multiplication.
  5. Multiply.
  6. Simplify.

Simplifying complex rational expressions

Simplify: y + 1 x x y .

Begin by combining the expressions in the numerator into one expression.

y x x + 1 x    Multiply by  x x  to get LCD as denominator . x y x + 1 x x y + 1 x    Add numerators .

Now the numerator is a single rational expression and the denominator is a single rational expression.

x y + 1 x x y

We can rewrite this as division, and then multiplication.

x y + 1 x ÷ x y x y + 1 x y x Rewrite as multiplication . y ( x y + 1 ) x 2 Multiply .
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Simplify: x y y x y

x 2 y 2 x y 2

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Can a complex rational expression always be simplified?

Yes. We can always rewrite a complex rational expression as a simplified rational expression.

Access these online resources for additional instruction and practice with rational expressions.

Key concepts

  • Rational expressions can be simplified by cancelling common factors in the numerator and denominator. See [link] .
  • We can multiply rational expressions by multiplying the numerators and multiplying the denominators. See [link] .
  • To divide rational expressions, multiply by the reciprocal of the second expression. See [link] .
  • Adding or subtracting rational expressions requires finding a common denominator. See [link] and [link] .
  • Complex rational expressions have fractions in the numerator or the denominator. These expressions can be simplified. See [link] .

Section exercises

Verbal

How can you use factoring to simplify rational expressions?

You can factor the numerator and denominator to see if any of the terms can cancel one another out.

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How do you use the LCD to combine two rational expressions?

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Tell whether the following statement is true or false and explain why: You only need to find the LCD when adding or subtracting rational expressions.

True. Multiplication and division do not require finding the LCD because the denominators can be combined through those operations, whereas addition and subtraction require like terms.

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Algebraic

For the following exercises, simplify the rational expressions.

x 2 16 x 2 5 x + 4

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y 2 + 10 y + 25 y 2 + 11 y + 30

y + 5 y + 6

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6 a 2 24 a + 24 6 a 2 24

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9 b 2 + 18 b + 9 3 b + 3

3 b + 3

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2 x 2 + 7 x 4 4 x 2 + 2 x 2

x + 4 2 x + 2

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6 x 2 + 5 x 4 3 x 2 + 19 x + 20

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a 2 + 9 a + 18 a 2 + 3 a 18

a + 3 a 3

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3 c 2 + 25 c 18 3 c 2 23 c + 14

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12 n 2 29 n 8 28 n 2 5 n 3

3 n 8 7 n 3

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For the following exercises, multiply the rational expressions and express the product in simplest form.

x 2 x 6 2 x 2 + x 6 2 x 2 + 7 x 15 x 2 9

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c 2 + 2 c 24 c 2 + 12 c + 36 c 2 10 c + 24 c 2 8 c + 16

c 6 c + 6

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2 d 2 + 9 d 35 d 2 + 10 d + 21 3 d 2 + 2 d 21 3 d 2 + 14 d 49

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10 h 2 9 h 9 2 h 2 19 h + 24 h 2 16 h + 64 5 h 2 37 h 24

1

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6 b 2 + 13 b + 6 4 b 2 9 6 b 2 + 31 b 30 18 b 2 3 b 10

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2 d 2 + 15 d + 25 4 d 2 25 2 d 2 15 d + 25 25 d 2 1

d 2 25 25 d 2 1

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6 x 2 5 x 50 15 x 2 44 x 20 20 x 2 7 x 6 2 x 2 + 9 x + 10

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t 2 1 t 2 + 4 t + 3 t 2 + 2 t 15 t 2 4 t + 3

t + 5 t + 3

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2 n 2 n 15 6 n 2 + 13 n 5 12 n 2 13 n + 3 4 n 2 15 n + 9

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36 x 2 25 6 x 2 + 65 x + 50 3 x 2 + 32 x + 20 18 x 2 + 27 x + 10

6 x 5 6 x + 5

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Questions & Answers

Ayele, K., 2003. Introductory Economics, 3rd ed., Addis Ababa.
Widad Reply
can you send the book attached ?
Ariel
?
Ariel
What is economics
Widad Reply
the study of how humans make choices under conditions of scarcity
AI-Robot
U(x,y) = (x×y)1/2 find mu of x for y
Desalegn Reply
U(x,y) = (x×y)1/2 find mu of x for y
Desalegn
what is ecnomics
Jan Reply
this is the study of how the society manages it's scarce resources
Belonwu
what is macroeconomic
John Reply
macroeconomic is the branch of economics which studies actions, scale, activities and behaviour of the aggregate economy as a whole.
husaini
etc
husaini
difference between firm and industry
husaini Reply
what's the difference between a firm and an industry
Abdul
firm is the unit which transform inputs to output where as industry contain combination of firms with similar production 😅😅
Abdulraufu
Suppose the demand function that a firm faces shifted from Qd  120 3P to Qd  90  3P and the supply function has shifted from QS  20  2P to QS 10  2P . a) Find the effect of this change on price and quantity. b) Which of the changes in demand and supply is higher?
Toofiq Reply
explain standard reason why economic is a science
innocent Reply
factors influencing supply
Petrus Reply
what is economic.
Milan Reply
scares means__________________ends resources. unlimited
Jan
economics is a science that studies human behaviour as a relationship b/w ends and scares means which have alternative uses
Jan
calculate the profit maximizing for demand and supply
Zarshad Reply
Why qualify 28 supplies
Milan
what are explicit costs
Nomsa Reply
out-of-pocket costs for a firm, for example, payments for wages and salaries, rent, or materials
AI-Robot
concepts of supply in microeconomics
David Reply
economic overview notes
Amahle Reply
identify a demand and a supply curve
Salome Reply
i don't know
Parul
there's a difference
Aryan
Demand curve shows that how supply and others conditions affect on demand of a particular thing and what percent demand increase whith increase of supply of goods
Israr
Hi Sir please how do u calculate Cross elastic demand and income elastic demand?
Abari
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Source:  OpenStax, Algebra and trigonometry. OpenStax CNX. Nov 14, 2016 Download for free at https://legacy.cnx.org/content/col11758/1.6
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