Question

Factor the expression completely.
minus, 18, plus, 42, x
−18+42x

Answer 1

To factor the expression \(-18 + 42x\), we can start by looking for a common factor between the two terms, \(-18\) and \(42x\).

The greatest common factor (GCF) of \(-18\) and \(42\) is \(6\). We can factor out \(-6\) from the expression, since we want to maintain the signs correctly as \(-18\) is negative.

Here are the steps for factoring:

1. Factor out \(-6\):
\[
-18 + 42x = -6(3 - 7x)
\]

Thus, the completely factored expression is:
\[
-6(7x - 3)
\]

If you want to express it in a different form, note that:
\[
-6(3 - 7x) = -6(-7x + 3)
\]

So, both forms \(-6(3 - 7x)\) and \(-6(7x - 3)\) are valid factorizations of the original expression \(-18 + 42x\).