Question

Find the x - and y -intercepts of the graph of the linear equation -4x+8y=-16 .

Answer 1

• x: (4, 0)
• y: (0, -2)

Explanation:

To find the x-intercept, set y=0 and solve for x. That will mean dividing by the coefficient of x:

-4x +0 = -16

x = -16/-4 = 4 . . . . the x-intercept

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To find the y-intercept, set x=0 and solve for y. That will mean dividing by the coefficient of y:

0 +8y = -16

y = -16/8 = -2 . . . . the y-intercept

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The x- and y-intercepts are (4, 0) and (0, -2), respectively.

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Additional comment

The standard form equation of a line, ax+by=c, is especially nice for finding the intercepts, as they are always (c/a, 0) and (0, c/b). Once you see this, you can do a question like this in your head.