To combine like terms, you need to: ^{mashupmath.com}+1 ^{1 2}

1. Look at the expression and determine whether any of the terms are like terms: in order for terms to be considered like terms both the variable and the exponent on the variable must be exactly the same.
2. Group like terms together.
3. Combine the like terms, be it by adding, subtracting, etc. ^{math.net 2}

For example, to combine the terms 3x + 5x, we can add them together to get 8x. ^{mashupmath.com 1}