Question

31 - 8a = 5 ( - 4 - 5a )

Answer 1

Answer:

Step-by-step explanation:

$31 - 8a = 5(-4 - 5a)$

First, on the right-hand side of the equation, let's distribute the $5$ to each term in the parenthesis:

$31 - 8a = -20 - 25a$

Now, let's move all the terms with an $a$ to the left-hand side, and everything else to the right-hand side of the equation:

$-8a + 25a = -20 - 31$

Let's combine like terms:

$17a = -51$

Finally, let's divide each side by $17$ to get $a$ by itself on the left-hand side of the equation:

$a = -3$