Question

An equation is shown below:

4(x − 3) − 5(x 1) = 3

which statement shows a correct next step in solving the equation?

the equation can become 4x − 3 − 5x 1 = 3 by applying the associative property of multiplication.
the equation can become 4x − 3 − 5x 1 = 3 by applying the distributive property.
the equation can become 4x − 12 − 5x − 5 = 3 by applying the distributive property.
the equation can become 4x − 12 − 5x − 5 = 3 by applying the associative property of multiplication.

Answer 1

Option C is correct

The equation can become
`4x -12 -5x -5= 3` by applying the distributive property.

Explanation:

Distributive property states that:

`a \cdot (b+c) = a\cdot b + a\cdot c`

As per the given statement:

An equation is given as:

`4(x -3) -5(x+1) = 3`

Apply the distributive property we have;

`4x -12 -5x -5= 3`

Therefore, the equation can become
`4x -12 -5x -5= 3` by applying the distributive property.

Answer 2

The equation is 4(x-3) -(5x+1) = 3

The next step is solving the equation is to apply the distributive property and the equation becomes 4x - 12 - 5x - 5 = 3.

So the correct answer is the third option.