If you multiply a number by four and then subtract negative ten, the difference is negative eighteen. What is the number?
To find the number, let's first break down the problem into smaller steps and translate it into an equation.
Step 1: Multiply a number by four.
Let's represent the unknown number as "x". This step can be written as 4x.
Step 2: Subtract negative ten.
When we subtract a negative number, it is the same as adding a positive number. So, subtracting negative ten is equivalent to adding ten. The result of this step is +10.
Step 3: The difference is negative eighteen.
The word "difference" means the result of subtracting two values. In this case, the difference is -18.
Now, we can put it all together into an equation:
4x + 10 = -18
To find the value of "x," we can solve this linear equation:
Step 1: Subtract 10 from both sides of the equation:
4x + 10 - 10 = -18 - 10
4x = -28
Step 2: Divide both sides of the equation by 4:
(4x)/4 = (-28)/4
x = -7
Therefore, the number you are looking for is -7.