How do you solve the equation |2x + 5| - 5 = -3, for x?
Absolute value means distance away from zero.
|2x + 5| - 5 = -3
|2x + 5| = 2 {added 5 to each side}
2x + 5 = 2 or 2x + 5 = - 2 {the absolute value of 2x + 5 was 2, therefore it could be equal to 2 or -2}
2x = -3 or 2x = -7 {subtracted 5 from each equation}
x = -3/2 or x = -7/2 {divided each equation by 2}
x = -1.5 or x = -3.5 {put into decimal form}
- Algebra House
|2x + 5| - 5 = -3
|2x + 5| = 2 {added 5 to each side}
2x + 5 = 2 or 2x + 5 = - 2 {the absolute value of 2x + 5 was 2, therefore it could be equal to 2 or -2}
2x = -3 or 2x = -7 {subtracted 5 from each equation}
x = -3/2 or x = -7/2 {divided each equation by 2}
x = -1.5 or x = -3.5 {put into decimal form}
- Algebra House
