four less than half a number is 17.find the number

0.5x - 4 = 17

Solve for x.

I put x over 2 so it's a little different.

X/2-4=17
+4 +4

X/2=21
x2 x2
X=42

To find the number, let's set up an equation based on the given information.

Let's assume the number is represented by "x."

"Four less than half a number" can be written as (1/2)x - 4.

According to the problem, this expression is equal to 17.

So we have: (1/2)x - 4 = 17.

To solve this equation, we can first add 4 to both sides to isolate (1/2)x.

(1/2)x - 4 + 4 = 17 + 4.

Simplifying the equation, we get: (1/2)x = 21.

To solve for x, we multiply both sides of the equation by 2 to cancel out the (1/2) fraction.

2 * (1/2)x = 2 * 21.

This simplifies to: x = 42.

Therefore, the number is 42.

To find the number, we can follow these steps:

Step 1: Let's represent the number as "x".
Step 2: We know that "four less than half a number" can be written as "(1/2)x - 4".
Step 3: The problem states that this expression is equal to 17, so we can set up the equation:
(1/2)x - 4 = 17
Step 4: To isolate "x," we can add 4 to both sides of the equation:
(1/2)x = 17 + 4
(1/2)x = 21
Step 5: To get rid of the fraction, we can multiply both sides of the equation by 2:
2 * (1/2)x = 2 * 21
x = 42

Therefore, the number is 42.