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Simplify: \( \frac{x}{x-3}-\frac{3}{x+4}+\frac{7}{x^{2}+x-12} \) Rewrite the expression using the LCD:

Ask by Conner Davison. in the United States
Mar 11,2025

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Tutor-Verified Answer

Answer

\[ \frac{x^2 + x + 16}{(x-3)(x+4)} \]

Solution

We start with the expression \[ \frac{x}{x-3} - \frac{3}{x+4} + \frac{7}{x^{2}+x-12}. \] **Step 1. Factor the denominator \(x^2+x-12\):** \[ x^2+x-12 = (x-3)(x+4). \] **Step 2. Rewrite each term with the LCD \((x-3)(x+4)\):** - For the first term: \[ \frac{x}{x-3} = \frac{x(x+4)}{(x-3)(x+4)}. \] - For the second term: \[ \frac{-3}{x+4} = \frac{-3(x-3)}{(x+4)(x-3)}. \] - For the third term: \[ \frac{7}{(x-3)(x+4)} \] remains the same. **Step 3. Combine the fractions:** \[ \frac{x(x+4)}{(x-3)(x+4)} - \frac{3(x-3)}{(x-3)(x+4)} + \frac{7}{(x-3)(x+4)} = \frac{x(x+4) - 3(x-3) + 7}{(x-3)(x+4)}. \] **Step 4. Simplify the numerator:** Expand each product: \[ x(x+4) = x^2 + 4x, \] \[ -3(x-3) = -3x + 9. \] So the numerator becomes: \[ x^2 + 4x - 3x + 9 + 7 = x^2 + x + 16. \] **Step 5. Write the final simplified expression:** \[ \frac{x^2 + x + 16}{(x-3)(x+4)}. \]

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To simplify the expression \( \frac{x}{x-3} - \frac{3}{x+4} + \frac{7}{x^2+x-12} \), we first need to factor the denominator of the third term. The expression \( x^2 + x - 12 \) factors into \( (x-3)(x+4) \). Now, the least common denominator (LCD) for the fractions will be \( (x-3)(x+4) \). Next, we will rewrite each term with the LCD: 1. For \( \frac{x}{x-3} \), we multiply the numerator and denominator by \( (x+4) \): \[ \frac{x(x+4)}{(x-3)(x+4)} = \frac{x^2 + 4x}{(x-3)(x+4)} \] 2. For \( -\frac{3}{x+4} \), we multiply the numerator and denominator by \( (x-3) \): \[ -\frac{3(x-3)}{(x+4)(x-3)} = \frac{-3x + 9}{(x-3)(x+4)} \] 3. For \( \frac{7}{x^2+x-12} \), we can rewrite it directly as: \[ \frac{7}{(x-3)(x+4)} \] Putting it all together, we have: \[ \frac{x^2 + 4x - 3x + 9 + 7}{(x-3)(x+4)} \] This simplifies the numerator to: \[ \frac{x^2 + x + 16}{(x-3)(x+4)} \] So, the simplified expression is: \[ \frac{x^2 + x + 16}{(x-3)(x+4)} \]

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