SOLUTION: A womans $20,000 estate is to be divided so that her husband is to receive three times as much as her son. find the amount that her husband and her son will receive. Step 1. Let '

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Question 622407: A womans $20,000 estate is to be divided so that her husband is to receive three times as much as her son. find the amount that her husband and her son will receive.
Step 1. Let 'S' represent the amount the son is to receive ___H___ represents the amount the husband would receive.
Step 2. ______ + _________ = $20,000
Repeat again, this time starting with the husband.
I am not sure where to even begin, can you help? Thank you.
Found 2 solutions by solver91311, lenny460:
Answer by solver91311(24713) (Show Source):
You can put this solution on YOUR website!

Presuming that no one else besides the husband and the son gets any of the $20K total amount, the amount that the son gets plus the amount that the husband gets must equal the total amount.

Next, step 3 is going to be to realize that you have another relationship given to you that involves these two amounts, namely that the husband gets 3 times as much as the son, so you can say that:

Step 4 is going to be using the Substitution Property of Equality that says if I have two things that are equal, either can be substituted in place of the other any time I like.

So, instead of writing:

We write:

Which is a linear equation in one variable that can be solved by ordinary means.

John

My calculator said it, I believe it, that settles it

Answer by lenny460(1073) (Show Source):
You can put this solution on YOUR website!
The husband gets = 3n
The son gets = n
(3n + n) = $20,000
3n + n = 4n
4n = $20,000
Divide each side by 4
4n/n = $20,000/4
n = $5,000
3n = $5,000 * 3 = $15,000
Therefore:
The husband gets $15,000
The son gets $5,000