Simplify the Radical Expression 5 square root of 9-9 square root of 16

$5 \sqrt{9} - 9 \sqrt{16}$

Step 1

Simplify each term.

Rewrite $9$ as $3^{2}$ .

$5 \sqrt{3^{2}} - 9 \sqrt{16}$

Pull terms out from under the radical.

$5 | 3 | - 9 \sqrt{16}$

The absolute value is the distance between a number and zero. The distance between $0$ and $3$ is $3$ .

$5 \cdot 3 - 9 \sqrt{16}$

Multiply $5$ by $3$ .

$15 - 9 \sqrt{16}$

Rewrite $16$ as $4^{2}$ .

$15 - 9 \sqrt{4^{2}}$

Pull terms out from under the radical.

$15 - 9 | 4 |$

The absolute value is the distance between a number and zero. The distance between $0$ and $4$ is $4$ .

$15 - 9 \cdot 4$

Multiply $- 9$ by $4$ .

$15 - 36$

Step 2

Subtract $36$ from $15$ .

$- 21$