The wording in that paragraph is a bit confusing. In this context, "term" refers to the entire product, For example, the equation "(a^2)b + (b)c^4 = 0" has two terms: (a^2)b, and (b)c^4.
The degree of the entire equation is the maximum of the degree of the individual terms. However, the degree of a term is the sum of the degree of all of the factors.
For example, the equation "a+b+c=10" is degree 1, but "abc=10" is degree 3.
Ah ok so he was talking about the degree of the equation but gave an example of calculating the degree of a term, the highest of which in any equation is its degree. That makes sense, thanks for clearing it up!
The degree of the entire equation is the maximum of the degree of the individual terms. However, the degree of a term is the sum of the degree of all of the factors.
For example, the equation "a+b+c=10" is degree 1, but "abc=10" is degree 3.