What is the answer to this -17 - y equals -9?

Answer 1

-8

Answer 2

-17-(y)=-9

y=-8

-17-(-8)=-9

That's not the best method, which is to add equal quantities to both sides of the equation, or to subtract equal quantities from both sides.

Think of an equation as a balance. If it balances to begin with, it will still balance (be true) if we do the same thing to both sides, and this includes both multiplication and division, even squaring & other changes,

The balance method is to start with -17- y = -9

Adding y to both sides of the equation we get -17= y - 9

Adding 9 to both sides of the equation we get -17 + 9 = y

So y = -17 +9

y = -8

A much neater method.