Solve 7+(-3): Adding Positive and Negative Numbers on a Number Line

Question

7+(3)= 7+(-3)= -6-6-6-5-5-5-4-4-4-3-3-3-2-2-2-1-1-1000111222333444555666777

Video Solution

Solution Steps

00:00 Solve
00:04 The number is directed and positive
00:08 The positive direction on the axis is to the right, so we'll take 7 to the right
00:18 The number is directed and negative
00:23 The negative direction on the axis is to the left, so we'll take 3 to the left
00:35 And this is the solution to the question

Step-by-Step Solution

Let's locate the number 7 on the number line.

Since the number 7 is greater than 0, we will move seven steps to the right from zero, where each step represents one whole number as follows:

-6-6-6-5-5-5-4-4-4-3-3-3-2-2-2-1-1-1000111222333444555666777

Now let's look at the operation in the exercise.

Since the operation is +(3) +(-3)

And the number minus 3 is less than 0, we will move three steps to the left from the number 7, where each step represents one whole number as follows:

-6-6-6-5-5-5-4-4-4-3-3-3-2-2-2-1-1-1000111222333444555666777

We can see that the number we reached is 4.

Answer

4 4