He did it my Cramer's rule (determinants). I didn't know if you'd had that or just the elimination method. So I thought I'd do it by the first method that's usually taught. Line them up so that like letters, signs, and equal signs, and numbers line up vertically. 4x - 3y = 1 2y - 3z = 2 3x + 2z = 3 The idea is to reduce that to a linear system with only 2 variables. Notice that one of the variables has already been eliminated in all three. Pick one of the three to be one of the equations in the system of 2 equations with 2 variables. It doesn't matter which of the three you pick. Say we pick the third one, from which y has already been eliminated. 3x + 2z = 3 Now even though a variable has been eliminated from the other two, you still must eliminate the same variable from the other two that is already eliminated in the one we picked, 3x + 2z = 3. So we eliminate y from the other two equations: 4x - 3y = 1 2y - 3z = 2 To eliminate y from them, we multiply the first equation by 2 and the second one by 3, and then add them: 8x - 6y = 2 6y - 9z = 6 ---------------- 8x - 9z = 8 So the linear system in 2 variables is 3x + 2z = 3 8x - 9z = 8 We can eliminate z by multiplying the first one just above by 9 and the second one just above by 2 and adding: 27x + 18z = 27 16x - 18z = 16 -------------- 43x = 43 x = 1 Substitute x = 1 in 3x + 2z = 3 3(1) + 2z = 3 3 + 2z = 3 2z = 0 z = 0 Substitute x = 1 in the first original equation: 4x - 3y = 1 4(1) - 3y = 1 4 - 3y = 1 -3y = -3 y = 1 Answer (x,y,z) = (1,1,0) Edwin