1. Radicals With Like Terms Recall that you can add two expressions if they are like terms. This process is based on the distributive property, which was shown in the second step. Example 1

2. In the same way we add two radical expressions if they are like terms. These terms were like since both radicals had the same index (2 in this case), and the same radicand. Example 2 You are encouraged to leave out the middle step.

3. Example 3 Simplify: Note that all three radicals have the same index … … and the same radicand. Add and subtract the coefficients to get …

4. Sometimes it is necessary to simplify the radicals first in order to create like terms. Example 4 Simplify:

5. Like Terms