distributive property

American  

[dih-strib-yuh-tiv prop-er-tee] / dɪˈstrɪb yə tɪv ˌprɒp ər ti /

noun

1. Mathematics. the property that terms in an expression may be expanded in a particular way to form an equivalent expression.

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Etymology

Origin of distributive property

First recorded in 1810–15

Example Sentences

This usually involves combining like terms or using the distributive property.

From Textbooks • Apr. 22, 2020

Using the distributive property as shown in Example 1.134 will be very useful when we solve money applications in later chapters.

From Textbooks • Apr. 22, 2020

We can distribute the in to obtain the equivalent expression When multiplying polynomials, the distributive property allows us to multiply each term of the first polynomial by each term of the second.

From Textbooks • Feb. 13, 2015

A special case of the distributive property occurs when a sum of terms is subtracted.

From Textbooks • Feb. 13, 2015

For everyday numbers to make sense, they have to have something called the distributive property, which is best seen through an example.

From "Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea" by Charles Seife