monomial

/moʊˈnoʊmiəl/

Other forms: monomials

In math, a monomial consists of just one term that's made up of whole numbers. The number 12 is a monomial, and so is the term 5x².

Polynomials, which are algebraic expressions that look like this: x6 + 4x3 + 3x2 − 7, are composed of a string of monomials (four, in this case). Each individual term is a monomial, as long as it doesn't contain a negative exponent or a fraction. Monomial actually comes from polynomial, coined by swapping out the prefix poly-, or "many," for mono-, "one."

Definitions of monomial

1. adjective

   (of algebraic expressions) consisting of a single term
2. noun

   an algebraic expression composed of one term
3. noun

   a taxonomic name composed of only one term or word
4. adjective

   (of biology or taxonomy) consisting of a single term or word