Answer: Hi!
Okay. So this equation we will solve using something called the distributive property. We use the distributive property to multiply the terms inside the parentheses (x and -2) by the term outside and in front of the parentheses (4). First, we would multiply 4 * x, which is 4x. Then, we would multiply 4 * -2, which is -8. Out equation now looks like this:
4x - 8 = 14
Our goal is to isolate the x, so now we'll use inverse operations to remove the -8 from the equation. The inverse operation for subtraction is addition, so we would add 8 to both sides:
4x - 8 = 14
+ 8 + 8
The eights cancel out, so we're left with this equation:
4x = 22
Last step! We're almost done. All we have to do now is divide 4 on both sides; in the term 4x, 4 is being multiplied by x, so the inverse operation would be division.
4x ÷ 4 = x
22 ÷ 4 = 5.5
Our equation now looks like this:
x = 5.5
So, 5.5 is equal to x! This would be your answer!
Hope this helps!