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The sum of two numbers is 48. Their difference is 38. Find the numbers.

2 Answers

6 votes

Answer:

5 and 43

I hope this helps!

User Philip Whitehouse
by
5.8k points
3 votes

Answer:

43 and 5

Explanation:

Let's let the two unknown numbers be a and b.

Their sum is 48, therefore:


a+b=48

And their difference is 38. In other words:


a-b=38

We now have a system of equations. To solve, we can use substitution. First, add b to both sides in the second equation:


a=38+b

Substitute this into the first equation:


(38+b)+b=48

Combine like terms:


2b+38=48

Subtract 38 from both sides:


2b=10

Divide both sides by 2:


b=5

So, one of the numbers is 5.

The sum of them is 48. Therefore, the other number is 48-5 or 43.

So, our two numbers are 43 and 5.

And we're done!

User Boxmein
by
5.3k points