4 is multiplied by the sum of a number and 8.

Question

I need help with my math but I am only in the 6th grade with anxiety and I dont have time for any of this

Answer 1

it just wants you to rewrite the expression!

so "4 is multiplied by the sum of a number and 8" means taking 4(x + 8) if you let "x" represent the number of interest

Answer 2

Celsie, I'm glad that you posted this question. It's ok to have some anxiety about things, especially when they seem confusing.

Some of the things that might help are:

1. Is there a title on whatever page this problem exists? Sometimes teachers or book writers will put titles that describe what you are practicing. If you're stuck, you can always try to search for that title on YouTube.
2. Are there directions on the page? What do they say? If the directions don't make sense, try typing those into a search bar and asking "What does ...... mean on my math homework?"
3. Do you have any examples? Are there any example problems either on paper or on notes or an online book that you can refer to?

Now let's think about this:

4 is multiplied by the sum of a number and 8

Normally, "is" means to use the = sign, but here the whole verb "is multiplied by" describes what's going on.

Multiplication!

4 times ( the sum of a number and 8 )

4 * (the sum of a number and 8)

What number are they talking about? Huh? In this case it seems like something is missing -- this crazy 'number' that we're supposed to add to 8. They didn't tell us what it was. That means it is unknown. So that means it is our variable. We can pick ANY letter that you want to stand for the variable. I'm going to pick 'n' since the word 'number' starts with n.

4 * (the sum of n and 8)

sum means to add n and 8

Final answer:

4*(n + 8) or you can write 4(n + 8)

I know, it might feel like you didn't 'solve' anything because there's still a variable. All you did was translate from the English words into the math symbols 4(n+8). That's awesome!

Chances are the directions said something like "Write the expression for the following." That means all you needed to do was write the "math" that tells the same thing as the English words.

It's kind of like if I told you to translate from English to Spanish: The dog is big. ..... El perro es grande. You're changing from one form of communication to another but not really answering a question.

Good luck!