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System of Linear Equations with Two Variables

A system of linear equations with two variables is usually a set of two linear equations.
For example, 𝒙 + 𝒚 = 𝟓 and 𝟐𝒙 − 𝒚 = 𝟏 are both linear equations with two variables. When
listed together, they form a system of linear equations.
System of Linear Equations with Two Variables

There are three types of systems of linear equations with two variables that can have three
types of solutions. An independent system has exactly one solution pair (x, y), an inconsistent
system has no solution, and a dependent solution has an infinite number of solutions.

In this handout, you will:

Look at two ways to solve systems of linear equations algebraically: substitution and
elimination/addition.

SUBSTITUTION METHOD

How do I solve systems of linear equations using substitution?

When solving a system of equations, our goal is to find the value of each variable within the
equations. Since each equation in the system has two variables, one way to reduce the number of
variables in an equation is to substitute an expression for a variable.

Steps to solve a system of equations using substitution:

1. Isolate one of the two variables in one of the equations.
2. Substitute the expression that is equal to the isolated variable from Step 1 into the other
equation. This should result in a linear equation with only one variable.
3. Solve the linear equation for the remaining variable.
4. Use the solution of Step 3 to calculate the value of the other variable in the system by
using one of the original equations.

Consider the following example:

𝑥 = 2𝑦
𝑥+𝑦 =3

In a system of equations, both equations are simultaneously true. In other words, since
the first equation tells us that x is equal to 2y the x in the second equation is also equal to 2y.
Therefore, we can plug in 2y as a substitute for x in the second equation:

𝑥+𝑦 =3 (2𝑦) + 𝑦 = 3 3𝑦 = 3

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From here, we can solve the equation, 3y = 3, by dividing the coefficient and isolating the y-
variable.
3𝑦 3
= 𝒚=𝟏
3 3

Now that we have found the value of y, we can substitute 1 into y to solve for the x-variable in
either equation in the system. For this example, we will use 𝑥 = 2𝑦:
System of Linear Equations with Two Variables

𝑥 = 2𝑦 𝑥 = 2 (1) 𝒙=𝟐

The solution (𝒙, 𝒚) to the system is (𝟐, 𝟏).

ELIMINATION METHOD

How do I solve systems of linear equations by elimination?

When solving a system of equations, our goal is to find the value of each variable within
the equations. Since each equation in the system has two variables, one way to reduce the
number of variables is to add or subtract the two equations in the system to cancel out, or
eliminate, one of the variables.

To solve a system of equations using elimination:

1. Identify a pair of terms in the system where the same variable has the same coefficient
but opposite signs.
a. If necessary, rewrite one or both equations so that a pair of terms have both the
same variable and coefficients but opposite signs.
2. Add (or subtract) the two equations in the system to eliminate the terms identified in
Step 1. This should result in a linear equation with only one variable.
3. Solve the linear equation to obtain a value for the variable.
4. Use the solution of Step 3 to calculate the value of the other variable in the system by
using one of the original equations.

Consider the following system of equations:

3𝑥 − 𝑦 = 7
2𝑥 + 𝑦 = 8

Note that in this example, the pair of terms in the system, −𝑦 and 𝑦, are the same
variable, have the same coefficient, 1, and have opposite signs. Therefore, we can add both
equations to cancel the y-variable.
3𝑥 − 𝑦 = 7
+ 2𝑥 + 𝑦 = 8

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Dr. Billy F. Cowart Hall 203
956.326.2884
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 ACADEMIC CENTER FOR EXCELLENCE
LEARNING TEAM
𝟓𝒙 + 𝟎 = 𝟏𝟓 5𝑥 = 15
Notice that the y-variables are eliminated as a result of adding the two equations. When solving
systems of equations using elimination, our aim is to always look for opportunities to cancel out
a pair of terms.
• If two terms have the opposite coefficients like in the system above (−𝑦 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑦), we can
System of Linear Equations with Two Variables

add the two equations to cancel the terms.

• If two terms have the same coefficients, we can subtract the two equations to cancel the
terms.

From here, we can solve the equation 5𝑥 = 15, then use the value of 𝑥 to find the value of 𝑦
First, to solve for 𝑥, we must isolate the x-variable by dividing the coefficient from both sides:
5𝑥 15
= 𝒙=𝟑
5 5

Now that we have found the value of x, we can substitute 3 into y to solve for the x-variable in
either equation in the system. For this example, we will use 2𝑥 + 𝑦 = 8:

2𝑥 + 𝑦 = 8 2(3) + 𝑦 = 8 6+𝑦 = 8 6+𝑦−6 = 8−6 𝒚=𝟐

The solution (𝒙, 𝒚) to the system is (3,2)

Texas A&M International University

Dr. Billy F. Cowart Hall 203
956.326.2884
[email protected]
 ACADEMIC CENTER FOR EXCELLENCE
LEARNING TEAM
References:

Abramson, J. (2014, February 20). Systems of linear equations: Two variables. Precalculus.
Retrieved July 21, 2022, from https://opentextbc.ca/precalculusopenstax/chapter/systems-
of-linear-equations-two-variables/

Yang, D. (n.d.). Solving systems of linear equations | Lesson. Retrieved July 21, 2022, from
System of Linear Equations with Two Variables

shorturl.at/cdGQ8

Texas A&M International University

Dr. Billy F. Cowart Hall 203
956.326.2884
[email protected]