17 Divided by What Equals 72?
Methods
Setting up the problem:
In a problem like this, the “what” means that we’re working with a variable. The most common variable used in math is “x”. So we could say what number, x can we divide 17 by to equal 72?
Solving 17 Divided by What Equals 72
Here’s how you would set up this question as an equation:
17
x
=
72
\frac{17}{x} = 72
x 17 = 72
The goal of the problem is to solve for x. To do this we need to change the equation so that x is alone on one side of the equation.In this case, it can be done in two steps. The first step is to multiply both sides by x to isolate 17:
17
=
72
∗
x
17 = 72*x
17 = 72 ∗ x
Then we can isolate x on the right side of the equation by dividing both sides by 72:
17
72
=
x
\frac{17}{72} = x
72 17 = x
When we simplify the new equation, we can solve for x. In this example, we will round to the nearest three decimal places if that’s needed.
x
=
0.236
x = 0.236
x = 0.236
Practice Other Division Problems Like This One
If this problem was a little difficult or you want to practice your skills on another one, give it a go on any one of these too!
What divided by 47 equals 3?
76 divided by what equals 2?
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What is 42 divided by 4/8?