Solve the simultaneous equations y= 3x +4 and y= 2x + 5

'Solve' means to find the values of the unknown variables in the equations, commonly letters, which in this question are x and y.Step 1: Put equations equal to eachotherBoth equations given are equal to y (written in the form y=), therefore we can put the parts containing x of the equations equal to each other, giving 3x+4 = 2x+5Step 2: Collect 'like' termsAll this means is to get all of the terms containing x (or letter given in the question) on one side, and all the numbers on the other side.So in this example, to get all the x's on one side we can subtract 2x from both sides giving x+4 = 5.And to get all the numbers on the other side, we can subtract 4 to both sides giving x=1Step 3: SolveIn this example, we have already managed to find out the value of x from step 2 (x=1)To find out y, we can substitute in our calculated x value into any of the equations given (it is usually quicker and easier to use the equation with smaller numbers!)So, using the second equation, and substituting in x=1, we can calculate the value of y. y = 2(1)+ 5 = 2+ 5 = 7 giving y=7Step 4: CheckIn an exam, if you have time, it is always worth checking you have calculated the correct answers!This is easy, just substitute your calculated values of x and y into both equations, and if correct, then each side will be equal to each other. For example:7 = 3(1) +4 = 3 + 4 = 7 7 = 2(1) + 5 = 2 + 5 = 7Both sides are equal to each other therefore this is correct!

VC
Answered by Vicky C. Maths tutor

12718 Views

See similar Maths GCSE tutors

Related Maths GCSE answers

All answers ▸

Solve 3x^2 - 4x - 6 = 0.


Each day Chen buys pasta or a sandwich. Where Pasta costs £3.20 and Sandwich costs £2.75. For 45 days, the relative frequency of Chen buying a sandwich was one fifth. Altogether, how much did he pay?


How do I calculate a percentage increase? For example; there are 15 fish in a fish tank, after a year they have bred and now there are 20 fish in the tank. By what % has the number of fish increased?


A right-angled triangle has an adjacent of (x + 1) and (x - 1). (a) Find the length of the hypotenuse in terms of x. (b) Explain why the triangle can't be an isoceles triangle.


We're here to help

contact us iconContact ustelephone icon+44 (0) 203 773 6020
Facebook logoInstagram logoLinkedIn logo

MyTutor is part of the IXL family of brands:

© 2026 by IXL Learning