As your math tutor, I’m here to help you break down factor pairs of 2231 step by step!
Factor pairs of 2231 are any two numbers that, when multiplied together, equal 2231. The question to ask is “what two numbers multiplied together equal 2231?” Every factor can be paired with another factor, and multiplying the two will result in 2231.
To find the factor pairs of 2231, follow these steps:
Step 1:
Find the smallest prime number that is larger than 1, and is a factor of 2231. For reference, the first prime numbers to check are 2, 3, 5, 7, 11, and 13. In this case, the smallest factor that’s a prime number larger than 1 is 23.
Step 2:
Divide 2231 by the smallest prime factor, in this case, 23:
2231 ÷ 23 = 97
23 and 97 will make a new factor pair.
Step 3:
Repeat Steps 1 and 2, using 97 as the new focus. Find the smallest prime factor that isn’t 1, and divide 97 by that number. In this case, 97 is the new smallest prime factor:
97 ÷ 97 = 1
Remember that this new factor pair is only for the factors of 97, not 2231. So, to finish the factor pair for 2231, you’d multiply 23 and 97 before pairing with 1:
23 x 97 = 2231
Step 4:
Repeat this process until there are no longer any prime factors larger than one to divide by. At the end, you should have the full list of factor pairs.
Here are all the factor pairs for 2231:
(1, 2231), (23, 97)
So, to list all the factors of 2231: 1, 23, 97, 2231
The negative factors of 2231 would be: -1, -23, -97, -2231
Now you’ve got it! A math tutor would always encourage you to practice with different numbers to reinforce your understanding of factor pairs. Try another one!