Simplify x^2+3x-4/x+4 show work and explain why x doesn’t equal -4

Take the numerator of the fraction and factor it out.



Your fraction should now look like this:



Because (x+4) is present in both the numerator and denominator, you can cross it out. You should be left with only (x-1) in the numerator.

x cannot equal -4, as if it is inputted in the denominator, -4 + 4 would equal 0. Dividing by 0 is impossible.

The answer is b: step 2.