[u]Distributive property:[/u][br][br][math]a\left(b+c\right)=ab+ac[/math][br][br]You multiply what is outside the parenthesis to everything that is inside the parenthesis.[br][br]Example:[br][math]3\left(x+2\right)=3x+6[/math][br][br]Special case: Distributing a negative means negating everything inside the parenthesis.[br][br][math]-\left(x^2+2x-6\right)=-x^2-2x+6[/math]