Question

Use the Associative Property to simplify the expression 3x+(x+2) to its simplest equivalent form.

Answer 1

To simplify the expression \( 3x + (x + 2) \) using the Associative Property, we can rearrange the terms in a way that makes combining them easier:

1. **Rewrite the expression**:
\[
3x + (x + 2) = 3x + x + 2
\]

2. **Apply the Associative Property**: This property states that you can group the terms in any way. In our case, we can group \(3x\) and \(x\) together:
\[
(3x + x) + 2
\]

3. **Combine like terms**:
\[
3x + x = 4x
\]
So, we have:
\[
4x + 2
\]

Thus, the simplest equivalent form of the expression \( 3x + (x + 2) \) is
\[
\boxed{4x + 2}.
\]