Algebra Help - Writing Inequalities

By Stuart Ackerman  MSc.Ed.,B.A.

     Inequalities are number sentences that are used in algebra. Inequalities are used when you aren’t sure what an expression is equal to.

     When working with inequalities, we don’t use an equal sign.  Instead, we use the following:

       > greater than
 < less than
                      < less than or equal to
                           > greater than or equal to

   You can translate a word problem into an inequality.   Here are some examples:

E.g. # 1

A number minus 5 is greater than 3.

The words "a number" tell us that we need a variable in our inequality, and that the result of the variable less "5" is more than 3.  

So...

n - 5 > 3

E.g. # 2

The sum of x and 6 is less than or equal to -3.

The words "the sum of" let us know that our inequality will involve addition. We can write the inequality this way:

x + 6 < -3

©Tutorgiant.com