F (x) = x2 - 2x

How would I factor this?

f (x) = x^2 - 2x ← Factor out a common factor in each, which is a x

= x (x - 2)

And there you go!

The only way to factor an equation such as this is by pulling out the greatest common factor. When we look at what is the largest term in both of these, we discover both have an x, but nothing else. So, we need to extract an x out of each piece.

f (x) = x^2 - 2x

f (x) = x (x - 2)

This will give you the fully factored form for this equation.