Question

Can someone please check my work?
Question~The product of a number and -5 less than 7.2
My Answer~
X*7.2-(-5)

What my teacher said~
7.2 - (-5x)
simplifying is?

~What does my teacher mean by that? Do I need to add "7.2 - (-5x)" together to get 12.2 as the answer?

Answer 1

`The product of a number and -5` means we have some unknown number x times -5 which is equal to -5*x or just -5x

Answer 2

since we're saying "less than 7.2" this means that we're subtracting whatever the result of -5x is from 7.2, so we say


7.2 - (-5x)

Answer 3

whenever you subtract a negative, you're really adding a positive

7.2 - (-5x) = 7.2 + 5x

we can't go any further because 7.2 and 5x aren't like terms. We cannot combine them

Answer 4

we can't say 7.2 + 5x = 12.2x or 7.2+5x = 12.2 (both equations are false)

Answer 5

Oh okay, well what did she mean by "simplifying is"?

Answer 6

just turning `7.2 - (-5x)` into `7.2 + 5x`

Answer 7

oh okay, Thank you very much @jim_thompson5910

Answer 8

I'll explain it this way: The product of a number and -5 less than 7.2
"The product" = Multiplication
"A number" = x
"and -5" = Concludes that the number is multiplied against -5, giving you -5x.
"less than" = Subtraction however words it in a tricky manner, making you finalize with:
-5x - 7.2 - Even though it would be this:
7.2 - (-5x) or 7.2 + 5x

Answer 9

Thank you too! @Ghostgate

Answer 10

np

Answer 11

Yeah, I was a bit late, but you're welcome! ;)