The sum of six and a number, x, is five.

Question

The sum of six and a number, x, is five.

Answer 1

6 + x = 5

To isolate x, we need to subtract 6 from both sides.

6-6=0, so this portion of the equation goes away, leaving only x on the left side of the equals sign.

On the right side, this gives us 5-6, which is -1.

All that’s left on the left side of the equation is x, so x = -1.