Factor the greatest common factor from the polynomial. Assume any variable exponents represent whole numbers.
12xy + 20xz - 8xw
Use the method I described in your following post.
What variable exponents? There are no exponents.
To factor the greatest common factor from the polynomial 12xy + 20xz - 8xw, we need to find the largest number and variable that divide evenly into all the terms.
Step 1: Find the common factors of the coefficients (numbers).
The coefficients in this polynomial are 12, 20, and -8. The common factors of these numbers are 2 and 4. However, since we are looking for the greatest common factor, we choose the larger value, which is 4.
Step 2: Find the common factors of the variables.
The variables in this polynomial are x, y, z, and w. To find the common factors, we look at the exponents of each variable. In this case, there is only one x in each term, so the common factor of x is x^1. There are no common factors for y, z, and w.
Step 3: Combine the common factors.
The greatest common factor of the polynomial is the product of the common factors we found in step 1 and step 2.
GCF = 4xy
Now we can factor the greatest common factor from the polynomial: 4xy(3 + 5z - 2w)