To solve the equation \(-3x - 13 = 14\) for \(x\), the first step is to isolate the term containing \(x\). You can do this by adding \(13\) to both sides of the equation.
Here are the steps:
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Start with the original equation: \[-3x - 13 = 14\]
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Add \(13\) to both sides: \[-3x - 13 + 13 = 14 + 13\] \[-3x = 27\]
From here, you can proceed to solve for \(x\) by dividing both sides by \(-3\).
So, the correct first step is to add \(13\) to both sides of the equation.