Question

What is the greatest common factor of 42a^5b^3,35a^3b^4,and 42ab^4?

Answer 1

`7a {b}^(3)`

Explanation:

`42 {a}^(5) {b}^(3) = 2 * 3 * 7 * a * a * a * a * a * b * b * b`

`35 {a}^(3) {b}^(4) = 5 * 7 * a * a * a * b * b * b * b`

`42a {b}^(4) = 2 * 3 * 7 * a * b * b * b * b`

We see that 7, a, and b^3 are common factors, so the GCF is

`7a {b}^(3)`