Algebra Examples

$y = \frac{1}{2} x + - 3$

Step 1

Replace all occurrences of $+$ $-$ with a single $-$ . A plus sign followed by a minus sign has the same mathematical meaning as a single minus sign because $1 \cdot - 1 = - 1$

$y = \frac{1}{2} x - 3$

Step 2

Use the slope-intercept form to find the slope and y-intercept.

Tap for more steps...

Step 2.1

Find the values of $m$ and $b$ using the form $y = m x + b$ .

$m = \frac{1}{2}$

$b = - 3$

Step 2.2

The slope of the line is the value of $m$ , and the y-intercept is the value of $b$ .

Slope: $\frac{1}{2}$

y-intercept: $(0, - 3)$

Slope: $\frac{1}{2}$

y-intercept: $(0, - 3)$

Step 3

Any line can be graphed using two points. Select two $x$ values, and plug them into the equation to find the corresponding $y$ values.

Tap for more steps...

Step 3.1

Reorder terms.

$y = \frac{1}{2} x - 3$

Step 3.2

Create a table of the $x$ and $y$ values.

$\begin{array}{c} x & y \\ 0 & - 3 \\ 2 & - 2 \end{array}$

Step 4

Graph the line using the slope and the y-intercept, or the points.

Slope: $\frac{1}{2}$

y-intercept: $(0, - 3)$

$\begin{array}{c} x & y \\ 0 & - 3 \\ 2 & - 2 \end{array}$

Step 5