# How do you simplify -4^2?

Jun 10, 2016

$- {4}^{2} = - 16$

#### Explanation:

$- {4}^{2}$ is just negative of ${4}^{2}$ or $16$

Hence $- {4}^{2} = - 16$

This is different from negative exponents (where the question was originally classified).

Negative exponent would be something like ${4}^{- 2}$, which is equivalent to $\frac{1}{4} ^ 2$ or $\frac{1}{16}$

Jul 23, 2016

$- {4}^{2} = - 16$

#### Explanation:

If this term had been in a calculation there would not have been the slightest hesitation in answering:

$10 + {5}^{2} \textcolor{b l u e}{- {4}^{2}}$

$= 10 + 25 \textcolor{b l u e}{- 16}$

$= 35 \textcolor{b l u e}{- 16}$

In $- {4}^{2}$ there are two operations happening, subtract, and raising to a power.

Because of the rules for order of operations,PEDMAS, BODMAS, etc, the more powerful operation (squaring) has to be done first.
$- \left({4}^{2}\right)$

$- {4}^{2} \text{ means: take away the answer to } 4 \times 4 , s o - 16$

${\left(- 4\right)}^{2} \text{ means } \left(- 4\right) \times \left(- 4\right) = + 16$