Asked by Anonymous

How do you find the GCF for numbers that have variable?

ex. 35a^2,85ab

Answers

Answered by MathMate
How do you find GCF of 8 and 12:
8=2*2*2
12=2*2*3
You look for all possible factors that are common for the two numbers, namely 2*2.

Same for expressions:
35a²=5*7*a*a
85ab = 5*17*a*b

Can you find the GCF now?
Answered by Anonymous
Would this be 5*a^3?
Answered by MathMate
No its not.
The factors that are common should be counted only once, like the 5 you counted only once.
a appears twice in the first expression, but only once in the second, so you count the minimum times it occurred, namely once.
So the common factor is 5a.
7, 17, and b do not have common factors in both expressions.
Answered by Anonymous
Thank you very much.
Answered by MathMate
You're very welcome!
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