Rationalize the Numerator

Rationalize the Numerator
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$$\frac{\sqrt{x+4} -2}{x }$$

answer:

$$\frac{1}{\sqrt{x+4} +2} $$

$\frac{\sqrt{x+h} - \sqrt{2}}{x}$ answer:$\frac{1} {\sqrt{x+h} + \sqrt{x}}$

Please show me the steps. I feel like the answer is easy, but its really making me go mad.

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3 Answers

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We have,

$$\frac{\sqrt{x+4}-2}{x} × \frac{\sqrt{x+4}+2}{\sqrt{x+4}+2}$$

$$= \frac{(\sqrt{x+4})^2-(2)^2}{x(\sqrt{x+4}+2)}$$

$$= \frac{x+4-4}{x(\sqrt{x+4}+2)}$$

$$= \frac{x}{x(\sqrt{x+4}+2)}$$

$$= \frac{1}{\sqrt{x+4}+2}$$

Similarly other question, but I think you have typo in that its $\sqrt h$ instead of $\sqrt 2$.

$$\frac{\sqrt{x+h}-\sqrt h}{x} × \frac{\sqrt{x+h}+\sqrt h}{\sqrt{x+h}+\sqrt h}$$

$$= \frac{(\sqrt{x+h})^2-(\sqrt h)^2}{x (\sqrt{x+h}+\sqrt h)}$$

$$= \frac{x+h-h}{x(\sqrt{x+h}+\sqrt h)}$$

$$= \frac{x}{x(\sqrt{x+h}+\sqrt h)}$$

$$= \frac{1}{\sqrt{x+h}+\sqrt h}$$

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$$\dfrac{\sqrt{x+4}-2}{x}=\\\dfrac{\sqrt{x+4}-2}{x}\times \dfrac{\sqrt{x+4}+2}{\sqrt{x+4}+2}=\\ \dfrac{\sqrt{x+4}^2-2^2}{x(\sqrt{x+4}+2)}=\dfrac{(x+4)-4}{x(\sqrt{x+4}+2)}=\\ \dfrac{x}{x(\sqrt{x+4}+2)}=\dfrac{1}{(\sqrt{x+4}+2)}$$ second one is like that ,As I said before ,I think second is this $$\color{red}{\frac{\sqrt{x+h} - \sqrt{h}}{x}}\\\vdots\\\frac{\sqrt{x+h} - \sqrt{h}}{x}\times \frac{\sqrt{x+h} + \sqrt{h}}{\sqrt{x+h} + \sqrt{h}}=\dfrac{x+h-h}{x(\sqrt{x+h} + \sqrt{h})}=\\ \dfrac{x}{x(\sqrt{x+h} + \sqrt{h})}=\dfrac{1}{(\sqrt{x+h} + \sqrt{h})}$$

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$$\begin{align}\frac{\sqrt{x+4}-2}{x}&=\frac{\sqrt{x+4}-2}{x}\cdot\frac{\sqrt{x+4}+2}{\sqrt{x+4}+2}\\ &=\frac{(\sqrt{x+4})^2-2^2}{x(\sqrt{x+4}+2)}\\ &=\frac{x+4-4}{x(\sqrt{x+4}+2)}\\ &=\frac{x}{x(\sqrt{x+4}+2)}\\ &=\frac{1}{\sqrt{x+4}+2}\end{align}$$

Your 2nd question does not match with your answer. But if your question is how rationalize the numerator of $\frac{\sqrt{x+h}-\sqrt{x}}{h}$ then your answer $\frac{1}{\sqrt{x+h}+\sqrt{x}}$ is correct. The solution is similar to the above solution.

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David Miller
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David Miller

David Miller brings 15 years of experience in global economics, personal finance strategy, and market dynamics. He specializes in turning complex economic trends into actionable insights for everyday readers.