[tex]Answer:[/tex] [tex]x = \frac{c}{a + b}[/tex]
Step-by-step explanation: Notice that the variable we're solving for in this problem appears in two separate terms. In this situation, we must first factor the x out of both terms to get x(a + b) = c.
Think about it as the reverse of the distributive property. In other words, if we take our second step and distribute the x through the parentheses, we end up back at our first step.
The beauty of factoring is that the two x's in this problem have now been combined into one x and we can get x by itself by simply dividing both sides by a + b and we have [tex]x = \frac{c}{a + b}[/tex].
In the image provided, I have highlighted the x in purple so we know what we're solving for and I have shown you the steps as well.
