How to factorise

For example: 5x +25

In order to factorise we need to find a common factor for both '5x' and '25'. This factor gets taken outside of the brackets.

For this example the common factor is 5. Because you can divide both '5x' and '25' by 5 to get whole numbers.

Now we divide '5x' and '25' by the common factor (5) to give us the numbers in brackets
5x ÷ 5 = x
25 ÷ 5 = 5

Therefore our factorisation becomes; 5(x + 5)
The sign (i.e. + - x or ÷) is the same in brackets as it is in the original equation
 

Answered by Emily C. Maths tutor

11601 Views

See similar Maths GCSE tutors

Related Maths GCSE answers

All answers ▸

Katie wants to buy 4 adult show tickets for £10 each and 2 child show tickets for £3 each. There is a 10% booking fee and 3% is then added for paying by credit card. Work out the total charge for Katie if she pays with a credit card.


The work in an office takes 200 hours to complete every week. Each person in the office works 35 hours a week. What is the smallest number of people needed to complete the work?


Prove that the sum of two consecutive integers is always odd


You area told that y is proportional to x2 and that when y = 75, x = 5. a) Find a formula for y in terms of x. b) Find the value of y when x = 3. c) Find the value of x when y = 1200.


We're here to help

contact us iconContact usWhatsapp logoMessage us on Whatsapptelephone icon+44 (0) 203 773 6020
Facebook logoInstagram logoLinkedIn logo
Cookie Preferences