Question

Brandon just bought a new coffee table. The length of the coffee table is 5 more than 3 times the width. If the perimeter of the coffee table top is 58 inches, what is the length and width of the coffee table?

Answer 1

The length is 23 inches and the width is 6 inches.

Explanation:

The perimeter for a rectangular shape is represented as:

P = 2L + 2W, where L represents length and W represents width

We can represent the length as:

L = 3W + 5

Substituting this into the perimeter function, we get:

P = 2 (3W + 5) + 2W

Substituting 58 for P, we get:

58 = 2 (3W + 5) + 2W

58 = 6W + 10 + 2W

58 = 8W + 10

58 - 10 = 8W + 10 - 10

48 = 8W

48 / 8 = 8W / 8

6 = W

With 6 being the established value for the width, we can substitute this back into the equation for length:

L = 3W + 5

L = 3(6) + 5

L = 18 + 5

L = 23

To check our work, we can substitute both the width and length into the perimeter equation:

P = 2L + 2W

58 = 2(23) + 2(6)

58 = 46 + 12

58 = 58

Therefore, length is 23 inches and the width is 6 inches.