Question

Find the greatest common factor of the terms in the following expression 18x+12xy​

Answer 1

Answer:   6x

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Explanation:

Ignoring the variables for now, the GCF of 18 and 12 is 6. This is the largest factor found in both values

• 18 = 6*3
• 12 = 6*2

Now let's consider the variables. Both terms have an 'x' in them, but not a y. This means x will be tacked on the 6 we found earlier to get the overall GCF to be 6x.

Note how

18x + 12xy = 6x*3+6x*2y = 6x(3+2y)

Showing we can factor out the GCF using the distributive property.