Linear and Quadratic Functions: Solving Linear Equations and Inequalities

Using the Substitution Property to Check Your Work

You should always check your work when solving linear equations. You can use the Substitution Property. The substitution property says that if a = b, you can replace a with b in any statement containing a and the resulting statement will also be true.

If we look at our previous example, 2 times the quantity one-half x plus 5, plus 2x equals 16 we can check our solution of x = 2. We substitute 2 in for x in the original equation to make sure that we calculated the correct answer.

2 times the quantity one-half times 2 plus 5, plus 2 times 2 equals 16. 2 times 6 plus 4 equals 16. 12 plus 4 equals 16. 16 equals 16

We have now checked that the solution that we calculated is correct. You should do this with every equation that you solve.