You need to solve this equation for $x : a x-7=26$

Which would be the best first step you could make to solve the equation?
(1 point)
divide $a x$ by a and 26 by a
add 7 to both sides of the equation
subtract 7 from the left side of the equation
Combine ax -7 to get $-7 x$

1 answer

To solve the equation \( ax - 7 = 26 \), the best first step would be to add 7 to both sides of the equation. This will help to isolate the term containing \( x \).

So, performing this operation:

\[ ax - 7 + 7 = 26 + 7 \]

This simplifies to:

\[ ax = 33 \]

Now, you can proceed to solve for \( x \).

Therefore, the best first step is to add 7 to both sides of the equation.