Question

Mario earned three times as much money last year as his wife Elena. The total amount that the two earned was $11,000. How much money did Mario earn?

Answer 1

OK. Let's call the amount Mario earned x. So since he earned three times as much as his wife, Elena, SHE earned x/3. Good so far?

Answer 2

I'll assume yes. So x + (x/3) = 11000. Solve.

Answer 3

Let mario and elena be the amount of money earned by Mario and Elena respectively. Solve the following for elena and mario.
{ mario = 3 elena, mario + elena = 11000 }

{ elena=2750, mario=8250 }