A perfect square trinomial is a quadratic expression that can be factored into the square of a binomial. The general form of a perfect square trinomial is either \((a + b)^2\) or \((a - b)^2\), which expands to \(a^2 + 2ab + b^2\) or \(a^2 - 2ab + b^2\), respectively.
From your options, let's identify which one is a perfect square trinomial:
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\(9x^2 - 49\): This is a difference of squares, not a trinomial, and cannot be factored as a perfect square trinomial.
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\(9x^2 + 42x + 49\): This can be factored as \((3x + 7)^2\). It fits the form \(a^2 + 2ab + b^2\), where \(a = 3x\) and \(b = 7\).
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\(9x^2 - 42x + 12\): This does not fit the characteristics of a perfect square trinomial.
Therefore, the perfect square trinomial from the given options is \(9x^2 + 42x + 49\).