Question

Rewrite 1/8x^3y + 7/8xy^2 using a common factor.

A. 1/4xy(4x^2 + 28y)
B. 1/4xy(x^2 + 7y)
C. 1/8x^3y^2(y + 7x)
D. 1/8xy(x^2 + 7y)

Answer 1

D. 1/8xy(x^2 + 7y)

Explanation:

You want to rewrite 1/8x^3y + 7/8xy^2 using a common factor.

Factors

The two terms have factors that can be identified as ...

• 1/8x^3y = (1/8)(x)(x)(x)(y)
• 7/8xy^2 = (7)(1/8)(x)(y)(y)

The factors that appear in both terms are (1/8)(x)(y), so we can factor that out:

= 1/8xy(x^2 +7y) . . . . . matches choice D