3x+2y=3 x-y=-4 First, we want to cancel out either x or y so that all we have left is the one we haven't cancelled and a number. To do this we can add or subtract the two equations, possibly multiplying one of the equations first. So, as the first equation as +y and the second has -y, if we add the two equations when they have the same coefficient, the y's will cancel. Therefore we can multiply the second equation by 2 to get 2x-2y=-8 (remember to multiply both sides of the equation) Therefore we have 3x+2y=3 2x-2y=-8 Add them together to get 5x=-5 From this we can see x=-1 Sub this into the other equations to confirm y=3