What is the value of 8 squared?

• A. 64
• B. 16
• C. 32
• D. 8

Answer: (A)

Squaring a number means multiplying it by itself. So for 8 squared, you multiply 8 by 8, which equals 64. This is a straightforward use of exponent 2: any number raised to the second power is that number times itself. The other options don’t fit because they come from values that aren’t the result of squaring 8 (8 itself) or come from squaring a different number (16 is 4 squared) or from a different operation (32 is 8×4). Therefore, the value is 64.