How Do You Solve A System Of Two Linear Equations And Two Unknowns By Using The Elimination Method?
Solving a system of two linear equations and two unknowns seems to be challenging for many students in algebra. There are many methods one can use to solve these types of problems such as substitution, graphing, or elimination of one of the variables. This article explains how to solve a system of two linear equations and two variables by using the elimination method, also referred to as the addition method or the subtraction method. Multiplication is also used in conjunction with the elimination method, but I will limit my discussion to the elimination method without multiplication. I will use the equations x+3y=15 and x-2y=5 to illustrate this method. Add the two equations together or subtract one equation from another in order to get rid of one of the variables. In this case, subtracting the second equation from the first equation gives 5y=10. Remember, 3-(-2) is +5. Now we can easily solve for one of the variables. Here, solve 5y=10 for y by dividing both sides of the equation by 5
