Three less than twice a number is the sum of a number and eight

Question

I don't understand the phrasing, can anyone help me?

I somehow need to translate this into an equation

Answer 1

I agree the phrasing of the problem is a bit suspect. I think it should have stated "is the sum of the same number and eight".

If x represents the number then:

1. Twice the number is 2x
2. Three less than that is 2x-3
3. The word "is" is represented algebraically by an "=" sign.
4. Sum of the number and 8 is x + 8.

Translating the words to algebra results in:

2x - 3 = x + 8

Solve that equation for x and determine if the solution makes sense.