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Algebra 2
Course: Algebra 2 > Unit 3
Lesson 1: Factoring monomials- Introduction to factoring higher degree polynomials
- Introduction to factoring higher degree monomials
- Which monomial factorization is correct?
- Worked example: finding the missing monomial factor
- Worked example: finding missing monomial side in area model
- Factoring monomials
- Factor monomials
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Factoring monomials
Learn how to completely factor monomial expressions, or find the missing factor in a monomial factorization.
What you should be familiar with before this lesson
A monomial is an expression that is the product of constants and nonnegative integer powers of x, like 3, x, squared. A polynomial is a sum of monomials, like 3, x, squared, plus, 6, x, minus, 1.
If A, equals, B, dot, C, then B and C are factors of A, and A is divisible by B and C. To review this material, check out our article on Factoring and divisibility.
What you will learn in this lesson
In this lesson, you will learn how to factor monomials. You will use what you already know about factoring integers to help you in this quest.
Introduction: What is monomial factorization?
To factor a monomial means to express it as a product of two or more monomials.
For example, below are several possible factorizations of 8, x, start superscript, 5, end superscript.
- 8, x, start superscript, 5, end superscript, equals, left parenthesis, 2, x, squared, right parenthesis, left parenthesis, 4, x, cubed, right parenthesis
- 8, x, start superscript, 5, end superscript, equals, left parenthesis, 8, x, right parenthesis, left parenthesis, x, start superscript, 4, end superscript, right parenthesis
- 8, x, start superscript, 5, end superscript, equals, left parenthesis, 2, x, right parenthesis, left parenthesis, 2, x, right parenthesis, left parenthesis, 2, x, right parenthesis, left parenthesis, x, squared, right parenthesis
Notice that when you multiply each expression on the right, you get 8, x, start superscript, 5, end superscript.
Reflection question
Completely factoring monomials
Review: integer factorization
To factor an integer completely, we write it as a product of primes.
For example, we know that 30, equals, 2, dot, 3, dot, 5.
And now to monomials...
To factor a monomial completely, we write the coefficient as a product of primes and expand the variable part.
For example, to completely factor 10, x, cubed, we can write the prime factorization of 10 as 2, dot, 5 and write x, cubed as x, dot, x, dot, x. Therefore, this is the complete factorization of 10, x, cubed:
Check your understanding
Finding missing factors of monomials
Review: integer factorization
Suppose we know that 56, equals, 8, b for some integer b. How can we find the other factor?
Well, we can solve the equation 56, equals, 8, b for b by dividing both sides of the equation by 8. The missing factor is 7.
And now to monomials...
We can extend these ideas to monomials. For example, suppose 8, x, start superscript, 5, end superscript, equals, left parenthesis, 4, x, cubed, right parenthesis, left parenthesis, C, right parenthesis for some monomial C. We can find C by dividing 8, x, start superscript, 5, end superscript by 4, x, cubed:
We can check our work by showing that the product of 4, x, cubed and 2, x, squared is indeed 8, x, start superscript, 5, end superscript.
Check your understanding
A note about multiple factorizations
Consider the number 12. We can write four different factorizations of this number.
- 12, equals, 2, dot, 6
- 12, equals, 3, dot, 4
- 12, equals, 12, dot, 1
- 12, equals, 2, dot, 2, dot, 3
However, there is only one prime factorization of the number 12, i.e. 2, dot, 2, dot, 3.
The same idea holds with monomials. We can factor 18, x, cubed in many ways. Here are a few different factorizations.
- 18, x, cubed, equals, 2, dot, 9, dot, x, cubed
- 18, x, cubed, equals, 3, dot, 6, dot, x, dot, x, squared
- 18, x, cubed, equals, 2, dot, 3, dot, 3, dot, x, cubed
Yet there is only one complete factorization!
Challenge problems
Want to join the conversation?
- i need help with this i have already tried a lot but i just don't get it.(11 votes)
- Let me see if I can help.
One way to look at factorizing monomials is pulling them apart into their basic parts. Like you had a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Pulling that into its basic parts, you could get bread times bread times peanut butter times jelly. That would be its complete factorization.
Now for a monomial
Say you have a monomial (or one term) that is 24x^2. There are a few ways to factor this. One example would be: (4x)(6x) This is not a complete factorization, but it is still a valid way to factorize it. Another way to do it would be (3)(8x^2) Its complete factorization would be 2 times 2 times 2 times 3 times x times x.
When factoring, you just need to make sure that when you preform all the operations, they still come out to be the original number. Like I need to make sure (4x)(6x) = 24x^2. Let's check. 4 times 6 equals 24, and x times x equals x^2. Those two multiplied together equals 24x^2.
I hope that helped! :)(27 votes)
- I'm having a hard time understanding how to find the width of the rectangle,how should i go about finding the width of a rectangle?(5 votes)
- Length times width equals area. So to find width, you would divide the area by length.
hope that helps!(12 votes)
- I'm so glad that he went into more detail with more videos. Because in the first video I was so lost lol.(10 votes)
- You don't earn energy points on the articles, but you guys do it anyway. Good job! Keep it up.(7 votes)
- yeah, i mean i noticed its just summary material-not new stuff(5 votes)
- I am still confused on how to tell if it is a monomial or not. Can you help me?(6 votes)
- A monomial is a single term polynomial, with a non-negative integer exponent.
Typically each term in a polynomial is separated by addition/subtraction.(6 votes)
- If it has 1 term, it is a monomial. If it has 2 terms, it is a binomial. 3 terms or more is a polynomial.(2 votes)
- Slight clarification: All of them are polynomials. The classification as monomial, binomial, or trinomial just gives more descriptive information about the polynomial. You omitted trinomial from you list. It has 3 terms.(9 votes)
- How can understand this better?(1 vote)
- as i tell myself practice makes progress not perfect because you cant be perfect or you'll die trying!(7 votes)
- Why you don't answer my questions(0 votes)
- I don't know what you mean. This is your 1st question and this is a response to that question. So your question is answered.
Try posting questions about the lesson when you don't understand something. Be specific about what you don't understand and you will likely get a response. Other KhanAcademy users respond to questions in their spare time to help people learn.(16 votes)
- this helped a lot but is there anyway to understand it better(3 votes)
- search Youtube for extra explanations(1 vote)
- idk what most of these are(3 votes)