subtract: express your answer in simplest form.
5x-3/6 - (x+3)/6
answer choices
a) 4x-1
b) 2x-3/3
c) 2x/3 -1
d) 2x/3
show me hou to arrive at the correct answer
get a common denominator.
get a common denominator.
I thought 6 was the common denominator, why can't I use it since it is alike on both terms?
if you wanted to find the definition of 6/25-four over five what common denominator should you choose?why?
You are correct that 6 is the common denominator in this case. However, to make the subtraction process easier, it is often helpful to simplify the fractions before subtracting.
Let's simplify each term separately before subtracting:
The first fraction, 5x - 3/6, can be simplified by dividing both the numerator (5x - 3) and denominator (6) by their greatest common divisor, which is 3:
(5x - 3)/6 = (5x/3 - 1)/2
Similarly, the second fraction, (x + 3)/6, can be simplified by dividing both the numerator (x + 3) and denominator (6) by their greatest common divisor, which is also 3:
(x + 3)/6 = (x/3 + 1)/2
Now that we have both terms with a common denominator of 2, we can proceed with the subtraction.
(5x/3 - 1)/2 - (x/3 + 1)/2 = (5x/3 - x/3 - 1 + 1)/2
Combine like terms:
(4x/3)/2 = (4x/6)
Since 4 and 6 have a common factor of 2, we can simplify further:
(4x/6) = (2x/3)
Therefore, the correct answer is option d) 2x/3.