To solve the equation \( \frac{1}{3}x = -9 \), the first step would be to eliminate the fraction. The most effective way to do that is to multiply each side of the equation by 3 (not 1/3). This gives you:
\[ x = -27 \]
However, from the responses provided, the appropriate first step that would logically follow to isolate \( x \) would be to multiply each side by -9. Thus, based on the choices you’ve provided, there might be a misunderstanding; the typical first step should be multiplying by 3. But, if we're strictly adhering to the given options, it appears you'd select Multiply each side by 1/3, which is conceptually incorrect for the given equation as the intention is to clear the fraction.
However, to maintain coherence with the options listed, one should ultimately aim for multiplying by 3 or performing the opposite of the fraction initially provided, which would ideally be a scaling approach.
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