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Tishk International University

Architectural Engineering Department
First Grade
Fall semester 2024-2025

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1. Polynomial Functions
2. Types of Polynomial Function
3. Name of Polynomials
4. Graphs of Polynomial Functions
5. Turning Points of Polynomial Functions
6. Roots of Polynomial Function
7. Zeros of Polynomial Functions
8. Description of the Behavior at Each x-intercept

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1. Polynomial Function
2. Types of Polynomial Function

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1. Polynomial Functions

✓ Polynomial functions are expressions that may contain variables of varying degrees, coefficients,
positive exponents, and constants.
✓ A polynomial function is a function such as a quadratic, a cubic, and so on, involving only non-negative integer
powers of x. We can give a general definition of a polynomial and define its degree.
✓ Here are some examples of polynomial functions.
•f(x) = 3x2 - 5
•g(x) = -7x3 + (1/2) x - 7
•h(x) = 3x4 + 7x3 - 12x2
✓ We generally represent polynomial functions in decreasing order of the power of the variables i.e. from left to right.
✓ A polynomial of degree n is a function of the form

✓ where the a’s are real numbers (sometimes called the coefficients of the polynomial). Although this general formula
might look quite complicated, examples are much simpler
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❖ For example,

is a polynomial of degree 3, as 3 is the highest power of x in the formula. This is called a cubic polynomial, or just
a cubic.
❖ And another example

is a polynomial of degree 7, as 7 is the highest power of x. Notice here that we don’t need every power of x up to 7:
we need to know only the highest power of x to find out the degree.

❖ An example you may be familiar with is

which is a polynomial of degree 2, as 2 is the highest power of x. This is called a quadratic. Functions containing
other operations, such as square roots, are not polynomials. For example,

is not a polynomial as it contains a square root. And

is not a polynomial as it contains a ‘divide by x’.

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2. Types of Polynomial Function

Some of the different types of polynomial functions on the basis of its degrees are given below :

•Constant Polynomial Function - A constant polynomial function is a function whose value does not change. It
remains the same and it does not include any variables.

•Zero Polynomial Function - Polynomial functions with a degree of 1 are known as Linear Polynomial functions.

•Linear Polynomial Function - Polynomial functions with a degree of 1 are known as Linear Polynomial
functions.

•Quadratic Polynomial Function - Polynomial functions with a degree of 2 are known as Quadratic Polynomial
functions.

•Cubic Polynomial Function - Polynomial functions with a degree of 3 are known as Cubic Polynomial
functions.

•Quartic Polynomial Function - Polynomial functions with a degree of 4 are known as Quartic Polynomial
functions.

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3. Name of Polynomials

The name of a polynomial is determined by the number of terms in it. The three most common polynomials we
usually encounter are monomials, binomials, and trinomials.

•Monomials are polynomials that contain only one term.

Examples: 15x2, 3b, and 12y4

•Binomials are polynomials that contain only two terms.

Examples: x2 + y, 4x3 – 7, and 9x5 + 2

•Trinomials are polynomials that contain only three terms.

Examples: x3 – 3 + 5x, z4 + 45 + 3z, and x2 – 12x + 15

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Examples -1-

What is the Degree of the Following Polynomial

i) 5x4 + 2x3 +3x + 4

Ans: degree is 4

ii) 11x9 + 10x5 + 11

Ans: degree is 9

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Examples -2-
Which of the following are polynomial functions?

Solution:

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4. Graphs of Polynomial Functions

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4. Graphs of Polynomial Functions

1. We have met some of the basic polynomials already. For example, f(x) = 2 is a constant function and f(x) = 2x + 1
is a linear function.

It is important to notice that the graphs

of constant functions and linear
functions are always straight lines

2. We have already said that a quadratic function is a polynomial of degree 2. Here are some examples of quadratic
functions:
You can see from the graph that,
as the coefficient of x2 is
increased, the graph is stretched
vertically (that is, in the y
direction).

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3. What will happen if the coefficient is negative? This will mean that all the positive f(x) values
will now become negative. So, what will the graphs of the functions look like? The functions are
now

Notice here that all these graphs

have been reflected in the x-
axis. This will always happen
for functions of any degree if
they are multiplied by −1.

4. Now let us look at some other quadratic functions to see what happens when we vary the coefficient of x, rather
than the coefficient of x2. We shall use a table of values in order to plot the graphs, but we shall fill in only those
values near the turning points of the functions.

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You can see the symmetry in each row of the

table, demonstrating that we have
concentrated on the region around the turning
point of each function. We can now use these
values to plot the graphs.

As you can see, increasing the positive

coefficient of x in this polynomial moves the
graph down and to the left.

5. What happens if the coefficient of x is negative?

Again, we can use these tables of values to plot the graphs of the functions.
As you can see, increasing the negative coefficient of x (in absolute terms)
moves the graph down and to the right.

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6. So now we know what happens when we vary the x2 coefficient, and what happens when we vary
the x coefficient. But what happens when we vary the constant term at the end of our polynomial?
We already know what the graph of the function f(x) = x2 + x looks like, so how does this differ
from the graph of the functions f(x) = x2 + x + 1, or f(x) = x2 + x + 5, or f(x) = x2 + x − 4? As usual,
a table of values is a good place to start.

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5. Turning Points of Polynomial

Functions

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5. Turning Points of Polynomial Functions

▪ A turning point of a function is a point where the graph of the function changes from sloping
downwards to sloping upwards, or vice versa. So, the gradient changes from negative to positive, or
from positive to negative. Generally speaking, curves of degree n can have up to (n − 1) turning
points.
1. For instance, a quadratic has only one turning point.

2. A cubic could have up to two turning points, and so would look something like this.

3.However, some cubics have fewer turning points: for example, f(x) = x3. But no cubic has more than
two turning points.

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6. Roots of Polynomial Function

7. Zeros of Polynomial Functions
8. Description of the Behavior at Each x-intercept

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Terminology of Polynomial Functions

We often rearrange polynomials so that the powers are descending.

When a polynomial is written in this way, we say that it is in general form.

Given a polynomial function, identify the degree and leading coefficient

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Examples -3-
Identify the degree, leading term, and leading coefficient of the following polynomial
functions.

Solution :

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Examples -4-
Identify the degree, leading term, and leading coefficient of the following polynomial
functions.

Solution :

Degree:
Leading term:
Leading coefficient:

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6. Roots of Polynomial Functions

• You may recall that when (x − a)(x − b) = 0, we know that a and b are roots of the function
f(x) = (x − a)(x − b).
• Now we can use the converse of this, and say that if a and b are roots, then the polynomial
function with these roots must be f(x) = (x − a)(x − b), or a multiple of this.
• For example, if a quadratic has roots x = 3 and x = −2, then the function must be
f(x) = (x−3)(x+2), or a constant multiple of this.
• This can be extended to polynomials of any degree. For example, if the roots of a polynomial
are x = 1, x = 2, x = 3, x = 4, then the function must be

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7. Zeros of Polynomial Functions

❖ You will need to set the function equal to zero and then use the Zero Product Property to find
the x-intercept(s). That means if ab = 0, then either a = 0 or b = 0 .
❖ To find the y-intercept of a function, you will find f (0).
❖ In some problems, one or more of the factors will appear more than once when the function is
factored.
❖ The power of a factor is called its multiplicity. So given ܲ , then the
multiplicity of the first factor is 3, the multiplicity of the second factor is 2 and the multiplicity
of the third factor is 1.

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8. Description of the Behavior at Each x-intercept

1. Even Multiplicity: The graph touches the x-axis, but does not cross it. It looks like a parabola there.
2. Multiplicity of 1: The graph crosses the x-axis. It looks like a line there.
3. Odd Multiplicity greater than or equal 3: The graph crosses the x-axis. It looks like a cubic there.

You can use all of this information to generate the graph of a polynomial function.
· degree of the function
· end behavior of the function
· x and y intercepts (and multiplicities)
· behavior of the function through each of the x intercepts (zeros) of the function

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Identifying Local Behavior of Polynomial Functions

In addition to the end behavior of polynomial functions, we are

also interested in what happens in the “middle” of the function.
In particular, we are interested in locations where graph
behavior changes.

1. A turning point is a point at which the function values

change from increasing to decreasing or decreasing to
increasing.

2. The y-intercept is the point at which the graph intersects the

vertical axis. The point corresponds to the coordinate pair in
which the input value is zero. Because a polynomial is
a function, only one Output value corresponds to each Input
value so there can be only one y- intercept (0,a0).

3. The x-intercepts occur at the input values that correspond to

an output value of zero. It is possible to have more than
one x-intercept .

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Steps to Graphing other Polynomials:

1. Determine the leading term. Is the degree even or odd? Is the sign of the leading coefficient
positive or negative?
2. Determine the end behavior. Which one of the 4 cases will it look like on the ends?
3. Factor the polynomial.
4. Make a table listing the factors, x-intercepts, multiplicity, and describe the behavior at each x
intercept.
5. Find the y- intercept.
6. Draw the graph, being careful to make a nice smooth curve with no sharp corners.

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SUMMARY OF
TERMINOLOGIES

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• Let us also think about the function f(x) = (x − 2)2. We can see straight away that x − 2
= 0, so that x = 2. For this function we have only one root. This is what we call a
repeated root, and a root can be repeated any number of times. For example, f(x) = (x
− 2)3(x + 4)4 has a repeated root x = 2, and another repeated root x = −4. We say that
the root x = 2 has multiplicity 3, and that the root x = −4 has multiplicity 4.

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Examples -5-
Sketch the following functions:
1. f(x) = (x − 2)2(x + 1)

2. f(x) = (x − 1)2(x + 3)

Solution:
1. To take another example, suppose we have the function f(x) = (x − 2)2(x + 1).
2. We can see that the largest power of x is 3, and so the function is a cubic.
3. We know the possible general shapes of a cubic, and as the coefficient of x3 is positive the curve must
generally increase to the right and decrease to the left.
4. We can also see that the roots of the function are x = 2 and x = −1. The root x = 2 has even multiplicity
and so the curve just touches the x-axis here, whilst x = −1 has odd multiplicity and so here the curve
crosses the x-axis.
5. This means we can sketch the graph as follows.

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Examples -6-

Given the function express the function as a polynomial

in general form, and determine the leading term, degree, and end behavior of the function.

Solution:

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Examples -7-

Given the function express the function as a polynomial

in general form, and determine the leading term, degree, and end behavior of the function.

Solution:

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Examples -8-

Decide whether the following functions are even, odd or neither.

1. f(x)=3x2 − 4
2. g(x) = 1/2x
3. f(x) = x3 − x2.

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Examples -9-

• Sketched below is part of the graph of y = f(x).

• Complete the graph if y = f(x) is
1. Odd
2. Even

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Examples -10-

Is y = f(x) even, odd or neither?

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Examples -11-

Let Q(x) = x2 − 4x + 3. We find the zeros of Q(x) by solving the equation Q(x) = 0.

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Examples -12-

Let Q(x) = x2 − 4x − 3. Solving the equation Q(x) = 0 we get,

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Examples -13-

Let Q(x) = x2 − 4x + 4. Solving the equation Q(x) = 0 we get,

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Examples -14-

Let Q(x) = x3. Solving Q(x) = 0 we get that x3 = 0.

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Examples -15-

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Examples -16-

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Examples -17-

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Examples -18-
Sketch the graphs of the following functions

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Examples -19-

Given the polynomial function written in factored form for your

convenience, determine the y- and x-intercepts.

Solution:
The y-intercept occurs when the Input is zero, so substitute 0 for x.

The y-intercept is (0,8).

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The x-intercepts occur when the output is zero.

The x-intercepts are (2,0),(–1,0), and (4,0).

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Examples -20-

Given the polynomial function written in factored form for your convenience,
determine the y- and x-intercepts.

Solution:
The y-intercept occurs when the Input is zero.

The y-intercept is (0,−45).

The x-intercepts occur when the output is zero. To determine when the output is zero, we will need to factor
the polynomial.

The x-intercepts are (3,0) and (–3,0).

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Examples -21-
Find the zeros then graph the polynomial. Be sure to label the x-intercepts, y-intercept if
possible and have correct end behavior.

P(x)= x4 (x-2)3 (x+1)2

Solution;
1. x and y intercepts
x- intercept; x= 0, 2, -1
y- intercept; y= 0
2. Leading term = x4.x3.x2 = x9 like
y= x3
3. End behaviour = odd function x9, positive. -1 0 2

like like
4. x= -1 y= x2 y= x2 y= x4
x= 0 y= x4
x= 2 y= x3

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Examples -22-
Find the zeros then graph the polynomial. Be sure to label the x intercepts, y intercept if
possible and have correct end behavior.
P(x)= x3 (x+2)1 (x-3)2

Solution;
1. x and y intercepts
x- intercept; x= 0, -2, 3
y- intercept; y= 0
2. Leading term = x3.x1.x2 = x6
3. End behaviour = even function x6, positive.
like like like
y= x -2 y= x3 1 y= x2
4. x= -2 y= x2 0
x= 0 y= x4
x= 3 y= x3

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Examples -23-
Find the zeros then graph the polynomial. Be sure to label the x-intercepts, y-intercept if
possible and have correct end behavior.
P(x)= -2(x+1)2 (x-3)

Solution;
1. x and y intercepts 6
x- intercept; x= -1, 3
y- intercept; y= -2 (0+1)2 (0-3) = 6
2. Leading term = -2.x2.x1 = -2x3
3. End behaviour = odd function (x3), negative (-).
like like
y= x2 -1 y= x 3
4. x= -1 y= x2 0
x= 3 y= x
x= 0 y= 6

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Examples -24-
Given the graph of a polynomial determine what the equation of that polynomial.

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References

• Thomas-Calculus-14th-Edition
• Internet sources

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