Geometrical Representation of Zeroes of a Polynomial

In the study of polynomials, you are aware that a real number ‘k’ is a zero of the polynomial p(x) if p(k) = 0. Remember, zero of a polynomial is different from a zero polynomial. We have seen the Remainder theorem use the concept of zeroes of a polynomial too. In order to understand their importance, we will look at the geometrical representations of linear and quadratic polynomials and the geometrical meaning of their zeroes.

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Linear Polynomial

Let’s look at a linear polynomial ax + b, where a ≠ 0. You have already studied that the graph of y = ax + b is a straight line. Let’s look at the graph of y = 2x + 3.

x	-2	2
y = 2x + 3	-1	7

The straight line y = 2x + 3 will pass through the points (- 2, – 1) and (2, 7). Here is how the graph looks like:

From the Fig.1 above, you can see that the graph of y = 2x + 3 intersects the x-axis at the point (- 3/2, 0). Now, the zero of (2x + 3) is (- 3/2). Therefore, the zero of the linear polynomial (2x + 3) is the x-coordinate of the point where the graph of y = 2x + 3 intersects the x-axis. Hence, we can say,

For a linear polynomial ax + b, a ≠ 0, the graph of y = ax + b is a straight line which intersects the x-axis at exactly one point, namely, (- b/a, 0). Also, this linear polynomial has only one zero which is the x-coordinate of the point where the graph of y = ax + b intersects the x-axis.

Browse more Topics under Polynomials

• Polynomial and its Types
• Value of Polynomial and Division Algorithm
• Degree of Polynomial
• Factorisation of Polynomials
• Remainder Theorem
• Factor Theorem
• Zeroes of Polynomial

Download NCERT Solutions for Class 10 Maths

Quadratic Polynomial

Let’s look at a quadratic polynomial, x² – 3x – 4. To look at the graph of y = x² – 3x – 4, let’s list some values:

x	– 2	– 1	0	1	2	3	4	5
y = x2 – 3x – 4	6	0	– 4	– 6	– 6	– 4	0	6

The graph of y = x² – 3x – 4 will pass through (- 2, 6), (- 1, 0), (0, – 4), (1, – 6), (2, – 6), (3, – 4), (4, 0) and (5, 6). Here is how the graph looks:

For that matter, for any quadratic polynomial y = ax² + bx + c, a ≠ 0, the graph of y = ax² + bx + c has either one of these two shapes:

• If a > 0, then it is open upwards like the one shown in the graph above
• If a < 0, then it is open downwards.

These curves are parabolas. A quick look at the table above shows that (-1) and (4) are zeroes of the quadratic polynomial. From the Fig. 2 above, you can see that (-1) and (4) are the x-coordinates of the points where the graph of y = x² – 3x – 4 intersects the x-axis. Therefore, we can say,

The zeroes of a quadratic polynomial ax² + bx + c, a ≠ 0, are precisely the x-coordinates of the points where the parabola representing y = ax² + bx + c intersects the x-axis.

As far as the shape of the graph is concerned, the following three cases are possible:

Case (i)

The graph cuts x-axis at two distinct points A and A′, where the x-coordinates of A and A′ are the two zeroes of the quadratic polynomial ax² + bx + c, as shown below:

Case (ii)

The graph intersects the x-axis at only one point, or at two coincident points. Also, the x-coordinate of A is the only zero for the quadratic polynomial ax2 + bx + c, as shown below:

Case (iii)

The graph is either

• Completely above the x-axis or
• Completely below the x-axis.

So, it does not cut the x-axis at any point. Hence, the quadratic polynomial ax² + bx + c has no zero, as shown below:

To summarize, a quadratic polynomial can have either:

• Two distinct zeroes (as shown in Case i)
• Two equal zeroes (or one zero as shown in Case ii)
• No zero (as shown in Case iii)

It can also be summarized by saying that a polynomial of degree 2 has a maximum of 2 zeroes.

Cubic Polynomial

Let’s look at a cubic polynomial, x³ – 4x. Next, let’s list a few values to plot the graph of y = x³ – 4x.

x	– 2	– 1	0	1	2
y = x3 – 4x	0	3	0	– 3	0

The graph of y = x³ – 4x will pass through (- 2, 0), (- 1, 3), (0, 0), (1, – 3), and (2, 0). Here is how the graph looks like:

From the table above, we can see that 2, 0 and – 2 are the zeroes of the cubic polynomial x³ – 4x. You can also observe that the graph of y = x3 – 4x intersects the x-axis at 2, 0 and – 2. Let’s take a quick look at some examples:

Let’s plot the graph of the following two cubic polynomials:

1. x³
2. x³ – x²

The graphs of y = x³ and y = x³ – x² look as follows:

From the first graph, you can observe that 0 is the only zero of the polynomial x³, since the graph of y = x³ intersects the x-axis only at 0. Similarly, the polynomial x³ – x² = x²(x – 1) has two zeroes, 0 and 1. From the second diagram, you can see that the graph of y = x³ – x² intersects the x-axis at 0 and 1.

Hence, we can conclude that there is a maximum of three zeroes for any cubic polynomial. Or, any polynomial with degree 3 can have maximum 3 zeroes. In general,

Given a polynomial p(x) of degree n, the graph of y = p(x) intersects the x-axis at a maximum of n points. Therefore, a polynomial p(x) of degree n has a maximum of n zeroes.

Solved Examples for You

Question 1: The graphs of y = p(x) are given in the figure below, for some polynomials p(x). Find the number of zeroes of p(x), in each case.

Answer : The number of zeroes in each of the graphs above are:

• 0, since the line is not intersecting the x-axis.
• 1, since the line intersects the x-axis once.
• 2, since the line intersects the x-axis twice.
• 2, since the line intersects the x-axis twice.
• 4, since the line intersects the x-axis four times.
• 3, since the line intersects the x-axis thrice.

Question 2:  What is meant by zeros of the function?

Answer: The zero of a function refers to any replacement for the variable that shall result in an answer of zero. Graphically, the real zero of a function is where the function’s graph crosses the x‐axis. So, the real zero of a function is the x‐intercept(s) of the function’s graph.

Question 3: How can one find zeroes in a function?

Answer: In order to find the zero of a function, one must find the point (a, 0) where the intersection of the function’s graph and the y-intercept takes place. In order to find the value of a from the point (a, 0), one must set the function equal to zero. Afterwards, one must try to solve for x.

Question 4: How many zeroes exist in a linear polynomial?

Answer: A linear polynomial consists of only 1 zero. In contrast, a quadratic polynomial consists of 2 zeroes while a cubic polynomial consists of 3 zeroes.

Question 5: Explain the zeroes in an equation?

Answer: The zeros of a quadratic equation refer to the points where the crossing of the graph of the quadratic equation takes place to the x-axis.