On Saturdays, Jason mows yards and washes cars. He charges $25 per yard and an additional cost for each car he washes. Last Saturday, Jason mowed 5 yards and washed 10 cars. He made a total of $225, and the equation `5(25)+10x=225` describes the amount of money he made that Saturday. What does the variable `x` represent in this situation?

Answer 1

In the equation 5(25) + 10x = 225, the variable x represents the additional amount of money Jason charges for each car he washes. To break it down:

• 5(25) indicates that he mowed 5 yards at $25 each, which totals $125.
• 10x indicates that he washed 10 cars, where x is the charge per car.

So, after mowing the yards, Jason earned $125 from mowing, and the remaining amount he earned from washing cars is represented by 10x. The total he made that day, $225, is the sum of the money from both services (mowing yards and washing cars). Thus, x is the cost per car wash.