Question

3x+2x-6=24 -2x -2x x-6=24 +6 +6 x=30
Show corrected work and answer and explain mistake made

Answer 1

Correct solution

Start with the equation:
3x + 2x - 6 = 24

Step 1 — combine like terms on the left:
(3x + 2x) - 6 = 24
5x - 6 = 24

Step 2 — isolate 5x by adding 6 to both sides:
5x - 6 + 6 = 24 + 6
5x = 30

Step 3 — divide both sides by 5:
x = 30 / 5
x = 6

Check:
3(6) + 2(6) - 6 = 18 + 12 - 6 = 24 ✓

Explanation of the mistake
In your work you ended up with x - 6 = 24, which suggests you subtracted 2x from the left side but did not do the same to the right side (or you tried to “cancel” terms incorrectly). You must perform the same operation to both sides of the equation or combine like terms first. Combining 3x + 2x into 5x avoids that error. The correct solution is x = 6, not x = 30.