What does "combining the solutions in O(n) time" mean?

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Algorithm $X$ proceeds by recursively solving $5$ subproblems of one-half the size, then combining the solutions in $O(n\log n)$ time.

Algorithm $Y$ makes $9$ recursively calls on subproblems with one-third the size, then combining the solutions in $O(n^2)$ time.

What do the last parts of these sentences mean? "Combining the solutions in $O(...)$ time? Can we represent $X$ and $Y$ by:

$$X(n) = 5X(n/2)+n\log n$$

$$Y(n)=9Y(n/3)+n^2$$

Or does it mean something different?