Which of the binomials below is a factor of this trinomial? x^2-8x-48

What two numbers multiply to -48 and add to -8? You can list out all the possible combos through trial and error. The two values are -12 and 4 since...

-12 plus 4 = -8
-12 times 4 = -48

So because the values are -12 and 4, we know that x^2-8x-48 factors to (x-12)(x+4)

The factors are x-12 and x+4
The order in which you list the factors doesn't matter. You can multiply in any order.

I’m sure you could google it. my profile picture might