Factoring a trinomial

I am an eighth grade student.I can not figure out the following problem. 4x² + 2x - 20

My name is Kyle.

Hi Kyle,

The first step in factoring any trinomial is to factor out any common factors, that is, any factors common to all three of the terms in the trinomial (in this case there is a common factor of 2).

4x² + 2x - 20 = 2(2x² + x - 10) Now we need to factor the trinomial in the parentheses.

One factor will be either (2x + something) or (2x - something) and the other one will be (x - something) or (x + something) respectively.

You determine the "somethings" from the factors of the constant term in the trinomial (10). Usually a few trial and error attempts will give you the right combination to result in the required coefficient on the x term.

Final answer: 2(2x + 5)(x - 2)

Leeanne Go to Math Central