2/5 minus what equals 4/1?

Here we will show you how to calculate "what" in this sentence: "2/5 minus what equals 4/1?" We start by making this word problem into an algebraic equation where "what" is the variable "x".

2/5 - x = 4/1

To solve this equation, we want x alone on the left side of the equation so we start by subtracting 2/5 on both sides like this:

2/5 - 2/5 - x = 4/1 - 2/5

2/5 - 2/5 - x leaves -x and 4/1 - 2/5 is 3 3/5 which means we end up with -x = 3 3/5. Then, you multiply each side by -1 to get x = -3 3/5. Therefore, the answer to "2/5 minus what equals 4/1?" is as follows:

-3 3/5

It is always good to double-check your math to make sure you did it right. When we entered -3 3/5 for x in this equation 2/5 - x = 4/1, we get the following true equation which means our math is correct.

2/5 - -3 3/5 = 4/1

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