Algebraic Expressions

Math, like any other language, has a way of

communicating ideas. An algebraic expression is a
concise way of describing mathematical objects through
the use of numbers, variables (letters), and arithmetic
operations such as addition, subtraction, multiplication,
and division.

The three main components of algebraic expressions

are numbers, variables, and arithmetic operations.

 Numbers or Constants
Examples: 11, 66, 88, 2727, 3232, etc.

 Variables or Letters
Examples: �x, �y, �a, ℎh, �p, etc.

 Arithmetic Operations
Examples: ++ (addition), –– (subtraction)
, ×× (multiplication) , ÷÷ (division)

The following are easy examples that can help you get
familiar with the operations of addition, subtraction,
multiplication, and division.

 Addition
the sum of �x and 55 → �+5x+5
  Subtraction
the difference of �y and 33 → �−3y−3

 Multiplication
the product of �n and 22 → 2�2n

 Division
the quotient of �k and 77 → �77k

Writing Algebraic Expressions Step-by-Step

Examples

Let’s go over more examples.

Example 1: The sum of twice a number and 33

Answer: Let variable �x be the unknown number. So

twice a number means 2�2x. The sum (use plus
symbol) of twice a number and 33 can be written
as 2�+32x+3.

Example 2: The difference of triple a number and 55

Answer: Let variable �y be the unknown number. So
triple a number means 3�3y. The difference (use
minus symbol) of triple a number and 55 should be
written as 3�–53y–5.

Example 3: The sum of the quotient of �m and 22, and

the product of 44 and �n.

Answer: In this case, the unknown numbers are already

provided as �m and �n. That’s one less thing to worry
about.

The key is to recognize that we are going to add a

quotient and a product.

 the quotient of �m and 22 is expressed

as �22m
 the product of 44 and �n is expressed

as 4�4n
Therefore, the sum of the quotient and product
is �2+4�2m+4n.
Example 4: The difference of the
product of 77 and �w, and the quotient
of 22 and �v.

Answer: In this case, the unknown numbers have been

assigned with corresponding variables which
are �w and �v.

The key is to recognize that we are going

to subtract the product by the quotient of some
expressions.

 the product of 77 and �w is expressed

as 7�7w
 the quotient of 22 and �v is expressed

as 2�v2
Therefore, the difference of the product and quotient
is 7�–2�7w–v2.

Common Words or Terms to Mean Addition,

Subtraction, Multiplication, and Division

Let’s go over some common words or phrases that

describe the four arithmetic operations. It is critical that
you understand these words or phrases in order to
successfully write or interpret any given algebraic
expression.
 Math Phrases into Algebraic Expressions

The key to learning is to study a LOT of examples!

MATH PHRASES ALGEBRAIC EXPRESSIONS

a number plus 9 y+9

the sum of a number and 10 m + 10

total of a number and 5 b+5

a number increased by 4 x+4

h take away 2 h−2

2 take away by a number 2−h

a number minus 11 k − 11

11 minus a number 11 − k

a number decreased by 7 y−7

the difference of n and 25 n − 25

 MATH PHRASES ALGEBRAIC EXPRESSIONS

the difference of 25 and n 25 − n

5 less than a number x−5

x less than the number 5 5−x

the product of r and 4 4r

7 times a number 7p

double a number 2x

triple a number 3x

a number divided by 4 w/4

the quotient of w and 6 w/6

the quotient of 12 and m 12 / m

a number divided by 3 f/3

t over 7 t/7

5 into a number a/5

a number into 5 5/a

 MATH PHRASES ALGEBRAIC EXPRESSIONS

the sum of x and 7 divided by 2 (x+7)/2

the difference of m and 3 over 5 ( m − 3) / 5

11 more than the product of 3 and y 3y + 11

6 less than the quotient of c and 10 ( c / 10 ) − 6

3 minus the product of 5 and a number 3 − 5x

the sum of 5 and the quotient of z and 7 (z/7)+5

the difference of twice a number and 3 2m − 3

Algebraic Sentences Word Problems

An algebraic sentence when written in equation form

involves algebraic expressions (which contain
variables such as letters in the alphabet), constants,
and an equal symbol. Each algebraic sentence may
contain a combination of algebraic expressions and
constants, or with just two or more algebraic
expressions. Almost always, the word “is” in an
algebraic sentence denotes the symbol of equality.

In our example above, the algebraic sentence, “Five

more than twice a number is forty-three“, is translated
and written into its equation form: 2�+5=432x+5=43.

But before we delve into solving word problems that

involve algebraic sentences, it’s crucial that we become
familiar with how to translate and write algebraic
expressions.
Algebraic Expressions

Learning how to write and translate algebraic

expressions is the foundation in writing algebraic
sentences. Eventually, we will use this knowledge to
write algebraic equations where we solve for the value
of the unknown variable.

What is an algebraic expression?

Think of an algebraic expression as the equivalent of a

phrase in the English language. It does not convey a
complete thought but is an important building block in
constructing a sentence. Algebraic expressions consist
of numbers, variables, and arithmetic operations.

Let’s take a quick look at some math phrases that were

translated and written into algebraic expressions.

 the sum of a number and 88 →�+8→c+8

 33 less than a number →�–3→y–3
 the product of 4545 and �m →45�→45m
 a number divided by 22 →�2→2x

Translating and Writing Algebraic

Sentences
Once you know how to translate math phrases into
algebraic expressions, it’ll be easy for you to translate
and write algebraic sentences in an equation form as
well.

For instance, how do you write “the difference of 16 and

k is seven” into an algebraic equation?

Let’s deconstruct this algebraic sentence.

You may notice that we translated “the difference

of 1616 and �k” into an algebraic
expression, 16−�16−k, then used the equal symbol (==)
in place of the word “is”.

As I mentioned at the beginning of this lesson, the word

“is” in an algebraic sentence, most of the time, signifies
the equality symbol which is the case in this example.

Therefore, we can write this algebraic sentence in

equation form as 16–�=716–k=7.

Now that we are confident in translating algebraic

sentences and writing them in an equation format, it’s
time for us to take one step further. We will not only
translate and write algebraic sentences into algebraic
equations but also proceed to solve them.
 Examples of Algebraic Sentences Word
Problems

The main key when solving word problems with

algebraic sentences is to accurately translate the
algebraic expressions then set up and write each
algebraic equation correctly. In doing so, we can ensure
that we are solving the right equation and as a result,
will get the correct answer for each word problem.

Example 1: Six more than seven times a number is

thirty-four. Find the number.

First, let’s deconstruct the algebraic sentence. It’s

important that we identify and separate the algebraic
expressions from the constants as well as determine if
the problem suggests equality between the terms.

For the unknown value, we’ll use �x as our variable.

Note: Since addition is commutative, changing the
order of the addends on the left side of the equation
does not change the sum. Therefore, we may also write
the algebraic expression as 7�+67x+6 or the algebraic
equation as 7�+6=347x+6=34 instead.

However, for our discussion, we will

use 6+7�=346+7x=34 as our equation.

The original problem asks us to find the number which in

this case is�x. So our next step is to solve for �x in
our equation, 6+7�=346+7x=34.

Solution:
Now, we’ll evaluate the value of �=4x=4 to verify if the
number we found satisfies the original algebraic
sentence.

Remember that we are asked to find the identity of “the

number” in our algebraic sentence and NOT the value of
the variable �x. Therefore, it will be incorrect to say
that �=4x=4 is the answer. This is a common mistake
that we always need to pay attention to.

We’ll replace the variable �x with the number 44 to

see if the algebraic expression on the left side of the
equation also results to 3434.
Yes, it does! This means that number 4 is the answer.

Example 2: The difference between three times a

number and five is sixteen. Find the number.

Right away, the word “difference” in our algebraic

sentence gives us a clue that we will be using the
subtraction operation. But, unlike, in addition, the order
of the terms within an expression matters in
subtraction. So we have to make sure that the terms in
our algebraic expression are set up in the correct order.

Another keyword is “times”, which suggests that 33 is

being multiplied to a number whose value is currently
unknown.

This time, let’s use �g as our variable. Start by

translating the algebraic expression correctly then
continue to write the equation.
Now that we have our equation, let’s find out what the
unknown value is by solving for the variable, �g.

Solution:

As discussed in our first example, it is important that we

verify if the result of our solution makes the algebraic
equation true. For this one, I will leave it up to you to
evaluate the value of�=7g=7. Remember to replace
the unknown value of the variable �g with the
number 77 to see if the left side of the equation is also
equal to 1616.

Since the original algebraic sentence requires us to find

the number, then the answer is number 7.

Example 3: A number decreased by half of the number

is four. Find the number.

This algebraic sentence is quite interesting because we

don’t just have one unknown value, but two! First, we
have the “number” (the unknown) then the “half of the
number”, which means one-half of the unknown.

The keyword “half of” also indicates multiplying

something by one-half while the “decreased by” tells us
that we will be subtracting one term from the other.

To organize our thoughts, let’s deconstruct this

algebraic sentence into its meat and potatoes.
Being able to break apart our algebraic sentence into its
basic parts allows us to read the sentence thoroughly
and understand the relationship between its quantities.

After setting up our algebraic equation, our next step is

to solve it for �m.

Solution:
We need to evaluate the value of �=8m=8 to check if
the number we got makes our algebraic equation true.
Great! The values on both sides of the equation are
equal to each other. Therefore, the number 8 is the
correct answer to our original algebraic sentence.

Example 4: Four times the sum of twice a number and

six is thirty-two. Find the number.

Looking closely, we see a few keywords that would help

us in translating this algebraic sentence into an
equation.

 times – means that we’ll be multiplying 44 by

the quantity, “sum of twice a number and six”
 sum – means that we need to add the terms,
“twice a number” and six
 twice – means that a number (the unknown

value) is multiplied by 22
With these in mind, let’s write our algebraic equation.
Notice that we used the variable �d in our equation to
stand for our unknown value. Let’s now proceed and
solve for �d and afterward, check if the value we get
indeed makes the equation true.

Solution:
Evaluate the value of �=1d=1:

Looks like everything checks out, so the answer to our

algebraic sentence is the number 1.

Example 5: Two-thirds of the sum of three times a

number and six is ten. What is the number?
This problem involves a fraction and an algebraic
expression as you can tell. The keyword “of” indicates
multiplication, so it tells us that we need to multiply the
fraction 2332 by the sum of the two given quantities
(“three times a number” and six).

Let’s move on and write our algebraic equation. We’ll

use the variable �y as the placeholder for our
“number” whose value is currently unknown.

Awesome! We are able to translate our algebraic

sentence into an equation. It’s time for us to solve
for �y then I’ll leave it up to you to do a check if the
number we find as the value of �y makes the algebraic
equation true.

Solution:

Once you evaluate �=3y=3, you’ll see that the

answer to our word problem is indeed the number 3.

Example 6: Twice the difference of a number and three

is four more than the number. Find the number.
We have an example here that is a little different from
the word problems we’ve covered so far. In this
algebraic sentence, both sides of the equation contain
an algebraic expression. However, the keywords present
will help us translate it correctly into an equation so
there’s nothing to worry about.

Keywords:

 twice – means that we will multiply the

quantity (difference of a number and three)
by 22
 difference – tells us to use the subtraction
operation between our unknown value
(“number”) and three
 more than – means that we need to add four to
our unknown value
Let’s solve for our unknown value, �a, then verify that
our result makes the algebraic equation true.

Solution:

Evaluate the value of �=10a=10:

Perfect! The value we got for �a which is 1010, made

our equation equal on both sides. Thus, the answer is
the number 10.