Question

How do you express the phrase "Twelve less a number is 40" as an algebraic expression?

Answer 1

`12-n=40`

Explanation:

Pick a variable to represent "a number" (I used `n`)

Twelve less a number is `40`
becomes
Twelve less `n` is `40`
`color(white)("XXXXXXXX")`replace "Twelve" with `12`
`12` less `n` is `40`
`color(white)("XXXXXXXX")`replace "less" with a minus sign
`12 - n` is `40`
`color(white)("XXXXXXXX")`replace "is" with an equal sign
`12-n=40`