Question

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14
marie bought sunscreen and beach towels. she bought 9 items total, buying 5 more towels than bottles of sunscreen. how many towels did she buy?

Explanation:

Define variables for items

Let \(t\) be the number of beach towels Marie bought.
Let \(s\) be the number of bottles of sunscreen Marie bought.

Set up equations

We are given two relationships:

1. The total number of items is 9:

$$t + s = 9$$

1. She bought 5 more towels than sunscreen:

$$t = s + 5$$

Substitute and solve

Substitute the second equation into the first:

$$(s + 5) + s = 9$$

$$2s + 5 = 9$$

$$2s = 4$$

$$s = 2$$

Calculate requested value

Now, find the number of towels \(t\):

$$t = s + 5$$

$$t = 2 + 5 = 7$$

Answer:

7