Final answer:
To determine the total number of possible meal combinations, multiply the number of options for each guest together using the multiplication principle.
Step-by-step explanation:
In this question, the subject is Mathematics and the grade level is High School.
To determine the number of possible meal combinations, we need to find the total number of guests and the number of meal options for each guest. Let's assume there are 22 guests attending the dinner party. Each guest has a choice between a vegetarian dinner or a steak dinner, so there are 2 options for each guest.
Since the dinner choices for each guest are independent, we can use the multiplication principle. The total number of possible meal combinations can be found by multiplying the number of options for each guest together. In this case, it would be 2 raised to the power of 22 (since each guest has 2 options).
Therefore, the total number of possible meal combinations is 2^22, which is equal to 4,194,304.