We have already started to look at how to turn written sentences into algebraic equations. Let's continue now by looking at some more complex examples, involving more than one operation.
Write down an equation in simplest form to represent "$v$v is $5$5 less than $3$3 lots of $u$u".
Think: What symbol, number or variable can we use to represent each part of the sentence?
Do: "$v$v is" means that $v$v will be on one side of the "$=$=" sign and everything else will be on the other side. "$3$3 lots of $u$u" means $3\times u$3×u, and "$5$5 less than" means we are going to subtract $5$5 from this amount (using the "$-$−" operator). So we have $v=3\times u-5$v=3×u−5, which we can write more simply as $v=3u-5$v=3u−5.
Let's watch some worked video examples:
Write an equation in simplest form for: $y$y is $x$x divided by $3$3 plus $12$12
Write an equation for: $y$y equals $5$5 times the sum of $x$x and $10$10
Form and solve simple linear equations