Answer:
The unknown number is -6
Step-by-step explanation:
Let's start by writing the sentence in mathematical terms:
Since we don't know what that "number" is, we replace it with the letter "". Then, <em>the quotient of that unknown number and three</em> can now be written as:
"<em>Five less than the quotient of a number by three</em>", can then be written as the difference (where we are subtracting 5 from that quotient):
The last part of the sentence tells us that the expression we just wrote in mathematical form "<em>is -7</em>." This in mathematical terms indicates "equals -7."
Therefore, we now have a mathematical equation (there is an equal sign in the expression) and we try to solve for the unknown number "" in it:
We do such by isolating the x on one side of the equal sign. This process involves: first add 5 on both sides of the equation, and second:multiply both sides of the equation by 3 to get rid of the denominator under the unknown: