14.8: Simplifying, Expanding, and Factoring Expressions — Read

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Symbolic math is also useful for algebraic manipulation. MATLAB can simplify expressions, expand products, and factor polynomials.

The simplify function attempts to rewrite an expression in a simpler form.

syms x
expr = cos(x)^2 + sin(x)^2;
simplified_expr = simplify(expr)

sBecause cos^2(x) + sin^2(x) = 1, MATLAB should simplify this expression to 1.
implified_expr =

1

The expand function multiplies out an expression when possible.

The factor function does the reverse when possible: it rewrites an expression as a product of factors.

syms x
myexpr = (x + 2)*(x - 1);

expanded_expr = expand(myexpr)

factored_expr = factor(expanded_expr)

expanded_expr = x^2 + x - 2

factored_expr = [x + 2, x - 1]

This page titled 14.8: Simplifying, Expanding, and Factoring Expressions was last modified on Tue, 30 Jun 2026 02:11:43 GMT and is shared under a CC BY-NC-SA license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by Zara Noroozi.

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