difference of 2 numbers is 18, sum in 90; find numbers

[kianamalele]

I am super lame in algebra and I need some help in completing some questions. They are word questions and i need help on several of them i will post a couple at a time to not overwhelm the boards. I would greatly appriciate anyone's help in solving these word problems and I need to verify my work so please give verifciation on the solution as well. Thank you!!!

Question #1: The difference of two numbers is 18, and their sum is 90. Find the two numbers.

Question #2: Three times a certain number is 46 more than the number itself. Find the number.

Question #3: If two-thirds of a woman's age is 42, how old is she?

your help with these questions would greatly be appriciated!!!

 

[Loren]

Re: WORD QUESTIONS

Before making suggestions, I would like to know if you are to use one variable or can you use two variables? In other words, if I had the statement "the differenced of two numbers is 1" I might name those two numbers using two variables. I could say...
Let one number be x.
Let the other number be y.
If I do that I must know how to build two equations in two unknowns and I must know the techniques for solving two equations in two unknowns.
If you are not that far, then you need to name the two numbers in terms of one variable. That same statement could be named as...
Let one number be called x.
Then, the other number would be x-1. I'm checking this by asking is x - (x-1} = 1? It is, so that is one way to name them.
Which are you supposed to use?

 

[kianamalele]

Re: WORD QUESTIONS

It look like you can name them x and y and find the x and find the y. Is what the workbook looks like how the other have been figured. Thanks for asking and that's throughout the word questions.

 

[Deleted member 4993]

Re: WORD QUESTIONS

I am super lame in algebra and I need some help in completing some questions. They are word questions and i need help on several of them i will post a couple at a time to not overwhelm the boards. I would greatly appriciate anyone's help in solving these word problems and I need to verify my work so please give verifciation on the solution as well. Thank you!!!

Question #1: The difference of two numbers is 18, and their sum is 90. Find the two numbers.

Question #2: Three times a certain number is 46 more than the number itself. Find the number.

Question #3: If two-thirds of a woman's age is 42, how old is she?

your help with these questions would greatly be appriciated!!!

Please show us your work - and exactly where you are stuck - so that we know where to begin to help you.

 

[kianamalele]

Where I am stuck is I don't even understand what I am suppose to do to find the numbers to these Word Problems. I can't show any work because I don't even know how to figure out the problems.

 

[stapel]

I can't show any work because I don't even know how to figure out the problems.

Are you saying that you don't know how to translate word problems in general? Or just "number" word problems in particular? Or do you need to start back at the beginning, with variables?

(Your class and textbook should have covered all of this material before assigning these exercises, so of course you should have some idea, unless you've missed the last few months of school. But then you'd need to hire a qualified local tutor to get caught up. So it seems reasonable to guess that you are probably exaggerating. But until you can give us something to work with, we don't know how to help.)

Please reply with clarification. Thank you!

Eliz.