SSAT Middle Level Quantitative › How to subtract variables
Solve for :
In order to solve for , move
to one side of the equation and everything else to the other. To do this, subtract
from both sides.
Simplify:
Remember, when there is a subtraction outside of a group, you should add the opposite of each member. That is:
That is a bit confusing, so let's simplify. When you add a negative, you subtract:
Now, group your like variables:
Finally, perform the subtractions and get:
Simplify:
Begin by distributing the through the group:
Next, perform the multiplications:
Group the like terms:
Combine like terms:
Rearrange the terms to get the answer as it appears in the answer choices.
First distribute the subtraction sign through the terms in the parentheses.
Subtraction of a negative is the same as adding a positive.
Rewrite.
Group all like terms together.
Evaluate the terms in each parentheses.
Rewrite in simplest form.
is the correct answer.
Simplify:
Begin by rewriting the subtracted group as a set of added negative numbers:
Now, simplify that a little by rewriting the additions of negatives as being mere subtractions:
Next, move the like terms next to each other:
Finally, combine like terms:
Simplify:
When solving this problem we need to remember our order of operations, or PEMDAS.
PEMDAS stands for parentheses, exponents, multiplication/division, and addition/subtraction. When you have a problem with several different operations, you need to solve the problem in this order and you work from left to right for multiplication/division and addition/subtraction.
Parentheses: We are not able to add a variable to a number, so we move to the next step.
Multiplication: We can distribute (or multiply) the .
Addition/Subtraction: Remember, we can't add a variable to a number, so the is left alone.
Simplify:
Begin by distributing the :
Multiply all factors:
Group together the only like factor ():
Combine like terms:
Simplify:
You need to begin by distributing the minus sign through the whole group . This gives you:
Simplifying the double negative, you get:
Now, you can move the like terms next to each other:
Finally, simplify:
Simplify:
When solving this problem we need to remember our order of operations, or PEMDAS.
PEMDAS stands for parentheses, exponents, multiplication/division, and addition/subtraction. When you have a problem with several different operations, you need to solve the problem in this order and you work from left to right for multiplication/division and addition/subtraction.
Parentheses: We are not able to add a variable to a number, so we move on to the next step
Multiplication: We can distribute the negative sign to the and
Remember, a negative times a negative will equal a positive, so we have a
Finally we can combine like terms
Simplify: