Question

A pencil costs $3.50 and a pen costs $6.70. Jessica bought m pens. She also bought 4 fewer pencils than pens. Write and algebraic expression for the total amount she spent.

Answer 1

Explanation:

Ok so Jessica bought M pens, which cost $6.70 each.

She also bought 4 fewer pencils than pens, or (M-4) pencils, at $3.50 each.

So in total, she spent:

6.7M + 3.5(M-4)

= 6.7M + 3.5M - 14

= 10.2M -14

So she spent $(10M - 14) on pens and pencils.

Hope this helped :)

Answer 2

Jessica bought X pens, which cost $6.70 each.

She also bought 4 fewer pencils than pens, or (X-4) pencils, at $3.50 each.

So in total, she spent:

6.7X + 3.5(X-4)

= 6.7X + 3.5X - 14

= 10.2X -14

So she spent $(10X - 14) on pens and pencils.