Question the-ex
The expression 
is equivalent to 
for some constant a. What is the value of a ?
2
3
4
7
The expression is equivalent to for some constant a . What is the value of a
Medium-difficulty · SAT Math · Equivalent Expressions — Simplifying polynomials. Read the question above, select your answer, and check the full explanation below to understand exactly why the correct choice works.
Answer explanation
Choice D is correct. It’s given that is equivalent to for some constant a. Distributing the x over each term in the parentheses gives 
, which is in the same form as the first given expression, . The coefficient of the second term in is 7. Therefore, the value of a is 7.
Choice A is incorrect. If the value of a were 2, then would be equivalent to 
, which isn’t equivalent to . Choice B is incorrect. If the value of a were 3, then would be equivalent to 
, which isn’t equivalent to . Choice C is incorrect. If the value of a were 4, then would be equivalent to 
, which isn’t equivalent to .
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