You need to solve this equation for x: ax−7=26

Question

Which would be the best first step you could make to solve the equation?

(1 point)
Responses

Combine ax - 7 to get -7x
Combine ax - 7 to get -7x

divide ax by a and 26 by a
divide ax by a and 26 by a

subtract 7 from the left side of the equation
subtract 7 from the left side of the equation

add 7 to both sides of the equation

Answer 1

The best first step to solve the equation \( ax - 7 = 26 \) is to add 7 to both sides of the equation.

This will help isolate the term with \( x \) on one side, leading to:

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

which simplifies to:

\[ ax = 33 \]

After this step, you can proceed to solve for \( x \).