10.8k views
4 votes
Mr. Pham wrote the equation below on the board.18 - 7x=-20.5What is the value of x?

1 Answer

4 votes

The expression we have is:


18-7x=-20.5

To solve this equation for x, we need to leave the x alone on one side of the equation. The steps to solve are:

Step 1. To leave the term with the x alone on the left side, we need to subtract 18 to both sides of the equation:


18-18-7x=-20.5-18

As you can see 18-18 is equal to 0, so on the left side we will only have the term -7x:


-7x=-20.5-18

and on the right side -20.5-18 is equal to -38.5:


-7x=-38.5

Step 2. Divide both sides of the equation by -7 in order to only have "x" on the left side:


(-7x)/(-7)=(-38.5)/(-7)

On the left side, the -7 on the numerator and denominator cancel each other:


x=(-38.5)/(-7)

And on the right side, since we are dividing two negative numbers, the result will be a positive number. Also, the result of the division is 5.5, so:


x=5.5

Answer:

What is the value of x? 5.5

User Ross McNab
by
9.0k points

Related questions

Welcome to QAmmunity.org, where you can ask questions and receive answers from other members of our community.

9.4m questions

12.2m answers

Categories