From the course: Learning Algebra: Solving Equations

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Steps for solving a two-step equation

Steps for solving a two-step equation

From the course: Learning Algebra: Solving Equations

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Steps for solving a two-step equation

- Now that you've mastered one-step equations, our next job will be to solve two-step equations. An example of a two-step equation is 2y + 3 = 43. This is a two-step equation, because in order to get y by itself, on the left-hand side, we need to get rid of the 2 and the 3. Therefore, this is going to require two steps. The 3 in this equation is called the constant. It's a constant because it's a number that stands alone. Remember that the 2 in this equation is called a coefficient; a coefficient is any number that is multiplied by the variable. So, we need to get rid of the 3 and the 2, in order to solve the equation. Of course, there are rules that we must follow, in order to solve a two-step equation, and it's very important that you follow these rules in order. The first rule is that you always remove the constant, by adding or subtracting, so that means that we need to get rid of the 3 first. The second rule is to remove the coefficient or divisor, by multiplying or dividing. So,…

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