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Polynomials
A polynomial
1
is an expression in mathematics that is made up of a finite weighted sum
(or finite arithmetic series
2
) of powers
3
of a variable (or variables). Polynomials play an
important role in mathematics since they form a class of expressions that are simple to
operate on and evaluate and they arise or can be used in a wide range of situations.
Most of the interest in polynomials is in polynomials of one variable or univariate
polynomials, which has the following general form:

+
1

1
+ . +
1
+
0
.
In the polynomial expression above, is the variable and the

are constants which are

also termed the coefficients. The variable may take a number of values or it may be
determined only by its context, for example in the cases when the polynomial
expression forms part of an equation.








The highest power of the variable in a polynomial expression is termed the degree (or
order).







1
Mathcentre Polynomials Guide : Video (43 min) : Exercises
2
Arithmetic Series
3
Powers and Roots
Examples

3
2
2 +5 is an example of a polynomial expression
+
1

is not a polynomial expression

2
3
+ 3 is an example of a polynomial expression
5
2
2
+31
is not a polynomial expression.
4
2
3
1
+5 is not a polynomial expression
Examples

3
2
2 +5 has degree 2
2
3
+ 3 has degree 3

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Classifying polynomials by their degree
The lowest degree that a polynomial can have is zero; the case in which the polynomial
is simply a constant. A polynomial of degree one is simply an expression involving a
multiple of x and a constant and such a polynomial is often said to be linear. A
polynomial of degree 2 is termed quadratic. The set of names up to degree six is given
in the following table.
degree name
0 constant
1 linear
2 quadratic
3 cubic
4 quartic
5 quintic
6 sextic
Properties of polynomials
The sum or product of two polynomials is a polynomial.
The derivative of the polynomial

+
1

1
+ . +
1
+
0

is

1
+ ( 1)
1

2
+ . +
1

and its indefinite integral is

+ 1

+1
+

+ . +

1
2

2
+
0
+ ,
where c is the integration constant.
Polynomials of two or more variables
A polynomial can be made up of more than one variable. A polynomial of two variables
is also called a bivariate polynomial. For example
2 +3 +4 ,

2
2 + 4 + 3
examples of bivariate polynomial.
The following expressions are examples polynomials of three variables or trivariate
polynomials. For example
3
+2
2
+ 2 3 + +2
is a trivariate polynomial.