How do you factor #x^{2}-x-6#?

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Answer 1 · 2018-07-06T17:20:00

#(x+2)(x-3)#

#x^2-x-6#

#=x^2-3x+2x-6#

#=x(x-3)+2(x-3)#

#=(x+2)(x-3)#

Answer 2 · 2018-07-06T17:36:13

#(x-3)(x+2)#

Let's do a little thought experiment:

What two numbers sum up to #-1# (middle term) and have a product of #-6# (last term)?

After some trial and error, we arrive at #-3# and #2#. Thus, we can factor this quadratic as

#(x-3)(x+2)#

Hope this helps!