Question

Translate the following into an equation and then solve the equation.

"Five less than the product of a number and -2 is -13

(1 point)
Responses

The number is -5

The number is -12

The number is 4

The number is -8

Answer 1

Let's translate the statement "Five less than the product of a number and -2 is -13" into an equation.

Let \( x \) represent the number. According to the statement, the product of the number and -2 is \( -2x \).

Then, "five less than this product" means we subtract 5 from \( -2x \). Therefore, the equation can be set up as:

\[
-2x - 5 = -13
\]

Now, we will solve the equation step by step:

1. Add 5 to both sides:

\[
-2x - 5 + 5 = -13 + 5
\]
\[
-2x = -8
\]

2. Divide both sides by -2:

\[
x = \frac{-8}{-2}
\]
\[
x = 4
\]

So the number is \( \boxed{4} \).