Factoring is rewriting an expression as which operation?

Factoring is rewriting an expression as which operation?

• A. ADDITION
• B. SUBTRACTION
• C. MULTIPLICATION
• D. DIVISION

Answer: (C)

Factoring rewrites an expression as a product, meaning it becomes something multiplied by something else. For example, x^2 + 5x + 6 can be written as (x+2)(x+3). When you multiply those factors, you recover the original expression, by distributing. So factoring is about turning a sum into a product of factors. It isn’t about addition, subtraction, or division, because those operations describe the original expression or other rearrangements, not the act of expressing it as a product. This idea also helps when solving equations: if the product equals zero, then one of the factors must be zero, giving the solutions. In short, the operation produced by factoring is multiplication.

Factoring rewrites an expression as a product, meaning it becomes something multiplied by something else. For example, x^2 + 5x + 6 can be written as (x+2)(x+3). When you multiply those factors, you recover the original expression, by distributing. So factoring is about turning a sum into a product of factors. It isn’t about addition, subtraction, or division, because those operations describe the original expression or other rearrangements, not the act of expressing it as a product. This idea also helps when solving equations: if the product equals zero, then one of the factors must be zero, giving the solutions. In short, the operation produced by factoring is multiplication.