The function f is defined by f(x)= 2/(x-3) + x - 6 . Determine the coordinates of the points where the graph of f intersects the coordinate axes.

If you look at a set of x,y-axes, and imagine any curve going through both axes (you don't have to be able to imagine what this graph of f looks like just yet). Now imagine the part of the graph that crosses the x axis, this could happen at any point along the x axis, depending on the graph you're imagining, but one thing we know for certain is that when the graph crosses the x-axis, we must be along the line y=0, i.e the value on the y-axis must be zero. this is why, to find the crossing point of the graph of f with the x-axis, all we need to do is set y=0, or f(x)=0 in this case, and rearrange from there. We will get a quadratic equation, which we can easily factorise to see that 0=(x-4)(x-5), meaning that the x-axis crossing points are (4,0) and (5,0). We can also reverse this argument, the y-axis crossing point must happen when x=0, so all we have to do here is plug x=0 into the equation for f, i.e, we need to calculate f(0), simple rearranging gives us the crossing point (0,-20/3).

NT
Answered by Natalie T. Maths tutor

4431 Views

See similar Maths A Level tutors

Related Maths A Level answers

All answers ▸

Differentiate ln(x)/x


The triangle ABC is such that AC=8cm, CB=12cm, angle ACB=x radians. The area of triangle ABC = 20cm^2. Show that x=0.430 (3sf)


Find the equation of the tangent line to the curve y = 2x^2 - 4x + 3 at the point (3,9)


Find the coordinates of the stationary point on the curve y=2x^2+3x+4=0


We're here to help

contact us iconContact ustelephone icon+44 (0) 203 773 6020
Facebook logoInstagram logoLinkedIn logo

MyTutor is part of the IXL family of brands:

© 2025 by IXL Learning