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Factoring the Greatest Common Factor from a Polynomial
To factor the greatest common factor (GCF) from a polynomial, apply the Distributive Property in reverse. Whereas multiplying a polynomial by a monomial uses to expand, factoring reverses the process using to condense. The procedure has four steps:
- Find the GCF of all the terms of the polynomial. Use prime factorization to identify the largest expression that divides evenly into every term.
- Rewrite each term as a product using the GCF. Express each term as the GCF multiplied by the remaining factor.
- Use the "reverse" Distributive Property to factor the expression. Write the GCF outside a single set of parentheses containing the remaining factors.
- Check by multiplying the factors. Distribute the GCF back through the parentheses to verify that the result matches the original polynomial.
For example, to factor : the GCF of and is , so rewrite as , then factor to get . Checking: ✓. This process is the reverse of multiplying a polynomial by a monomial — starting with the product and recovering the factors.
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References
OpenStax Elementary Algebra
OpenStax Elementary Algebra
OpenStax Elementary Algebra
OpenStax Elementary Algebra
OpenStax Elementary Algebra
OpenStax Elementary Algebra
OpenStax Elementary Algebra
OpenStax Elementary Algebra
OpenStax Elementary Algebra
OpenStax Elementary Algebra
OpenStax Intermediate Algebra
OpenStax Intermediate Algebra
OpenStax Intermediate Algebra
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