Question

A while back, either James borrowed $12 from his friend Rita or she borrowed $12 from him, but he can’t quite remember which. Either way, he is planning to pay her back or ask that she pay him back this afternoon. If he has $42.80 in his wallet, which equation represents the amount of money he may have after he sees Rita?

|x – 42.80| = 12
|x + 42.80| = 12
|x – 12| = 42.80
|x + 12| = 42.80

Answer 1

The correct equation representing James's potential money after seeing Rita is |x - 42.80| = 12, accounting for either paying or receiving $12.

Step-by-step explanation:

The equation that represents the amount of money James may have after he sees Rita, considering he currently has $42.80 and he may either pay her $12 or receive $12 from her is |x - 42.80| = 12. This equation takes into account both scenarios: if James has to pay Rita, he will subtract $12 from his current amount, and if Rita has to pay him, he will add $12 to his current amount. The absolute value is used because we're considering two possible changes to the amount he has: a decrease or an increase by $12.