As your math tutor, I’m here to help you break down factor pairs of 392 step by step!
Factor pairs of 392 are any two numbers that, when multiplied together, equal 392. The question to ask is “what two numbers multiplied together equal 392?” Every factor can be paired with another factor, and multiplying the two will result in 392.
To find the factor pairs of 392, follow these steps:
Step 1:
Find the smallest prime number that is larger than 1, and is a factor of 392. 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 2.
Step 2:
Divide 392 by the smallest prime factor, in this case, 2:
392 ÷ 2 = 196
2 and 196 will make a new factor pair.
Step 3:
Repeat Steps 1 and 2, using 196 as the new focus. Find the smallest prime factor that isn’t 1, and divide 196 by that number. In this case, 2 is the new smallest prime factor:
196 ÷ 2 = 98
Remember that this new factor pair is only for the factors of 196, not 392. So, to finish the factor pair for 392, you’d multiply 2 and 2 before pairing with 98:
2 x 2 = 4
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 392:
(1, 392), (2, 196), (4, 98), (7, 56), (8, 49), (14, 28)
So, to list all the factors of 392: 1, 2, 4, 7, 8, 14, 28, 49, 56, 98, 196, 392
The negative factors of 392 would be: -1, -2, -4, -7, -8, -14, -28, -49, -56, -98, -196, -392
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!