Question

If I was asked to think of a number and multiply it by 2, I could

write this algebraically as 2x.
Write the following algebraically, using x as your unknown.
"I think of a number, take away 1 and multiply the result by 3."

Answer 1

"I think of a number, take away 1 and multiply the result by 3" can be written algebraically as:

3(x - 1)

where x is the unknown number that is being thought of.

We subtract 1 from x because the problem asks to "take away 1", and then we multiply the result by 3 because the problem asks to "multiply the result by 3".

So the expression 3(x - 1) represents the result of thinking of a number, taking away 1, and multiplying the result by 3.

Answer 2

Using x as the unknown number, the algebraic expression for the given situation would be:

3(x - 1)