How many terms are in the expression below? what is the second term? 5x^2-8/6x+7xy^2-9

Well, let's place brackets to signify each term.

(5x^2) - (8/6x) + (7xy^2) - (9).

From this we can see that there are 4 terms. The second term is - 8/6x with the preceding sign.

Terms are separated by + or - signs. If I understand the way you've written the expression, there are 5 terms: 5x^2 and 8 in the numerator, and 6x and 7xy^2 and 9 in the denominator. The second term would be 8 in this case.

If instead you mean (8/6) x, there are 4 terms here: 5x^2, (8/6) x, 7xy^2, and 9. The second term would be (8/6) x in this case.