Example -
4x2 + 6x + 5
This polynomial has three terms. The first one is 4x2, the second is 6x, and the third is 5
The exponent of the first term is 2
The exponent of the second term is 1 because 6x = 6x1
The exponent of the third term is 0 because 5 = 5x0
What? 5x0 = 5?
Well, anything with an exponent of 0 is always equal to 1
So, 5x0 = 5 × x0 = 5 × 1 = 5
Since the highest exponent is 2, the degree of 4x2 + 6x + 5 is 2