A polynomial of four terms, known as a quadrinomial, can be factored by grouping it into two binomials, which are polynomials of two terms. Identify and remove the greatest common factor, which is common to each term in the polynomial. For example, the greatest common factor for the polynomial 5x^2 + 10x is 5x.
How do you factor cubics?
In general, to factorise a cubic polynomial, you find one factor by trial and error. Use the factor theorem to confirm that the guess is a root. Then divide the cubic polynomial by the factor to obtain a quadratic. Once you have the quadratic, you can apply the standard methods to factorise the quadratic.
How do you factor a polynomial?
To factor the GCF out of a polynomial, we do the following:
- Find the GCF of all the terms in the polynomial.
- Express each term as a product of the GCF and another factor.
- Use the distributive property to factor out the GCF.
