1. **State the problem:** Use the distributive property to expand the expression $3(b + 9)$. 2. **Recall the distributive property formula:** For any numbers $a$, $b$, and $c$, $$a(b + c) = ab + ac$$ This means you multiply the term outside the parentheses by each term inside the parentheses separately. 3. **Apply the distributive property:** $$3(b + 9) = 3 \times b + 3 \times 9$$ 4. **Simplify each term:** $$3b + 27$$ 5. **Final answer:** $$3(b + 9) = 3b + 27$$ This means the expression $3(b + 9)$ expands to $3b + 27$ by multiplying 3 with both $b$ and 9.