Writing Expressions from Real World Problems

Writing Algebraic Expressions: Word Problems

By Eileen Johnson

Parts of an algebraic expression

Define constant, variable and coefficent.

Multiple Choice

Which part of this equation is a constant?

10 + 2x

• 2

• 10

• x

• +

Multiple Choice

Which part of this equation is a variable?

10 + 2x

• 2

• 10

• x

• +

Open Ended

What makes a number a "constant" in an expression?

Open Ended

Which of these would you compare God to and why?

A variable, coefficient or constant.

​Great answers!

​

Okay, time to practice....

Multiple Choice

Strawberries are $1.95 a pound. Write an expression for p pounds of strawberries. 

• $1.95+p
• $1.95-p
• $1.95/p
• $1.95p

Multiple Choice

Nate has 6 fewer CDs than Emily.  If c represents the number of CDs Emily has, which expression tells how many CDs Nate has?

• 6-c
• 6+c
• c-6
• c+6

Multiple Choice

Jamal helped his grandmother plant her vegetable garden. He planted 3 rows of zucchini seeds and 4 rows of yellow squash seeds. Each row had s seeds. Which expression represents how many seeds Jamal planted in all?

• 3s + 4s

• 3s + 4

• 4s + 3

• 34s

Multiple Choice

If g represents Edna’s grade, which expression shows that she earned 5 points extra credit?

• $$g\ +\ 5$$

• $$g\ -\ 5$$

• $$5g$$

• $$\frac{g}{5}$$

Multiple Choice

If c represents the cookies the Joe bought, which expression shows how much he split between himself and 3 siblings?

• $$\frac{c}{4}$$

• $$4c$$

• $$c\ +\ 4$$

• $$c\ -\ 4$$

Multiple Choice

Luke's parents hired a clown for his birthday party. The clown charges $100 plus an additional $20 per hour. If h represents the hours, which expression represents how much Luke's parents spent on the clown?

• $$100\ +\ 20h$$

• $$100h\ +\ 20$$

• $$100\ +\frac{h}{20}$$

• $$100\ +\ h$$

Multiple Choice

Tiana went to Game Stop to purchase a gaming system. They had a special promotion where for a limited time systems were half the price. She also had a coupon for $25 dollars off the sale price. If g represents the game system, which expression represents the sale price along with the coupon?

• $$\frac{g}{2}\ -\ 25$$

• $$\frac{g}{2}+25$$

• $$2g\ -\ 25$$

• $$\frac{g}{25}-2$$

Multiple Choice

Wayne ate Takis everyday for n days. He ate 28 bags total. Write an expression for how many bags of Takis Wayne ate each day.

• $$\frac{28}{n}$$  

• $$28-n$$  

• $$\frac{n}{28}$$  

• $$28n$$  

Multiple Choice

Rhonda was organizing photos in a photo album. She took 60 photos and divided them evenly among p pages. Which algebraic expression represents the number of photos on each page?

• p / 60

• 60 / p

• 60 + p

• 60p

Multiple Choice

Mr. Marcin is making bags of prizes. He has 92 prizes and splits them evenly into b bags. Which expression represents how many prizes are in each bag?

• $$b\div92$$  

• $$92\ -\ b$$  

• $$92b$$  

• $$92\ \div b$$  

Multiple Choice

There were 47 frogs in a pond. f of the frogs hopped away. Choose the expression that represents the number of frogs left in the pond.

• $$f\ -\ 47$$

• $$f\ +\ 47$$

• $$47\ \div\ f\$$

• $$47\ -\ f\$$

Multiple Choice

There are r rows of chairs with 8 chairs in each row. Choose the expression that represents the total number of chairs.

• $$8r$$

• $$8\ \div\ r\$$

• $$r\div8$$

• $$8\ +\ r$$

Multiple Choice

A plane traveling to New York has 100 seats on board. If there are p passengers on the plane, which expression represents the number of empty seats there are on the plane?

• p - 100

• 100 - p

• 100p

• 100 + p

Multiple Choice

Find an expression that matches the following situation: Catherine wants to buy a new laptop. It costs $2,000. She already has d dollars saved in her piggy bank. She needs to know how much money she still needs.

• 2,000+d

• d-2,000

• 2,000-d

• 2,000÷d

Multiple Choice

Sarah lives 5 miles farther from school than Grant. If g represents the distance Grant lives from school, which expression represents the total number of miles Sarah and Grant travel to school?

• (g + 5) + g
• (5 × g) + g
• (g + 5) + 5
• (5 × g) × 5

Multiple Choice

Matthew is 3 times older than Brian. If x represents Brian’s age, which expression represents the combined age of Matthew and Brian?

• 3x
• 3x + x
• x + 3
• x + x + 3