What property is shown in negative parenthesis negative 38 plus 17 parenthesis equals 38 plus negative 17?

Answer 1

-(-38 + 17) = 38 + (-17)

On the left side we read: the opposite of the quantity. Since that quantity contains two terms, it also means the opposite of both terms.

Let me rewrite the left side, such as - {-(38) + [- (-17)]}.
(notice, -38 is the opposite of 38, and -(-17) is the opposite of -17)
Let me distribute the negative sign to both terms of the quantity, -(-38) + {-[- (-17)]}.
So we have an equivalent statement such as
-(-38) + {- [-(-17)]} = 38 + (-17)
As you see, in this new statement we have the opposite of the opposite of a number which would give us back the number itself, and as a result
38 + (-17) = 38 + (-17)
Therefore, the original statement is an identity.