Steve is holding nickels and dimes in his hand. He has 4 more dimes than nickels. He has a total of 70 cents in his hand. How many nickels is he holding?
Define a variable ** Let x be the number of nickels he is holding.
How much are his nickels worth? ** His nickels are worth 5 * x = 5x cents.
How many dimes does Steve have? ** He has x+4 dimes.
How much are the dimes worth? ** The dimes are worth 10 * (x+4)
Write an equation ** The total worth of the nickels and dimes is 5x + 10*(x+4) = 70.
Combine like terms ** 5x + 10x + 40 = 70
Add 10 to each side ** 15x = 30
How many nickels does Steve have? ** x = <<2=2>>2, Steve has 2 nickels in his hand.
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