Question ID d1b66ae6

Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Algebra Systems of two

linear equations in
two variables

ID: d1b66ae6

If satisfies the system of equations

above, what is the value of y ?

ID: d1b66ae6 Answer

Rationale

The correct answer is . One method for solving the system of equations for y is to add corresponding sides of the two
equations. Adding the left-hand sides gives , or 4y. Adding the right-hand sides yields . It

follows that . Finally, dividing both sides of by 4 yields or . Note that 3/2 and 1.5 are examples of
ways to enter a correct answer.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID cb8f449f
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Algebra Systems of two

linear equations in
two variables

ID: cb8f449f

The system of equations above has solution (x,

y). What is the value of x ?

A. 3

B.

C. 4

D. 6

ID: cb8f449f Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale
Choice D is correct. Adding the corresponding sides of the two equations eliminates y and yields , as shown.

If (x, y) is a solution to the system, then (x, y) satisfies both equations in the system and any equation derived from them.
Therefore, .

Choices A, B, and C are incorrect and may be the result of errors when solving the system.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID ff501705
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Algebra Systems of two

linear equations in
two variables

ID: ff501705

In the given system of equations, is a constant. If the system has no solution, what is the value of ?

ID: ff501705 Answer

Correct Answer: 6

Rationale
The correct answer is . A system of two linear equations in two variables, and , has no solution if the lines represented
by the equations in the xy-plane are parallel and distinct. Lines represented by equations in standard form,
and , are parallel if the coefficients for and in one equation are proportional to the corresponding
coefficients in the other equation, meaning ; and the lines are distinct if the constants are not proportional, meaning
is not equal to or . The first equation in the given system is . Multiplying each side of this
equation by yields . Adding to each side of this equation yields , or
. The second equation in the given system is . Multiplying each side of this equation by
yields . Subtracting from each side of this equation yields . Subtracting from
each side of this equation yields . Therefore, the two equations in the given system, written in standard form,
are and . As previously stated, if this system has no solution, the lines represented by the
equations in the xy-plane are parallel and distinct, meaning the proportion , or , is true and the
proportion is not true. The proportion is not true. Multiplying each side of the true proportion,
, by yields . Therefore, if the system has no solution, then the value of is .

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID bf4a8b6a
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Algebra Systems of two

linear equations in
two variables

ID: bf4a8b6a

A company that provides whale-watching tours takes groups of people at a time. The company’s revenue is dollars per
adult and dollars per child. If the company’s revenue for one group consisting of adults and children was dollars,
how many people in the group were children?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: bf4a8b6a Answer

Correct Answer: C

Rationale
Choice C is correct. Let represent the number of children in a whale-watching tour group. Let represent the number of
adults in this group. Because it's given that people are in a group and the group consists of adults and children, it must be
true that . Since the company's revenue is dollars per child, the total revenue from children in this group
was dollars. Since the company's revenue is dollars per adult, the total revenue from adults in this group was
dollars. Because it's given that the total revenue for this group was dollars, it must be true that .
The equations and form a linear system of equations that can be solved to find the value
of , which represents the number of children in the group, using the elimination method. Multiplying both sides of the
equation by yields . Subtracting from yields
, which is equivalent to , or .
Dividing both sides of this equation by yields . Therefore, people in the group were children.

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice B is incorrect. This is the number of adults in the group, not the number of children in the group.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 0dd6227f
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Algebra Systems of two

linear equations in
two variables

ID: 0dd6227f

At how many points do the graphs of the equations and intersect in the xy-plane?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 0dd6227f Answer

Correct Answer: B

Rationale
Choice B is correct. Each given equation is written in slope-intercept form, , where is the slope and is
the y-intercept of the graph of the equation in the xy-plane. The graphs of two lines that have different slopes will intersect at
exactly one point. The graph of the first equation is a line with slope . The graph of the second equation is a line with slope
. Since the graphs are lines with different slopes, they will intersect at exactly one point.

Choice A is incorrect because two graphs of linear equations have intersection points only if they are parallel and therefore
have the same slope.

Choice C is incorrect because two graphs of linear equations in the xy-plane can have only , , or infinitely many points of
intersection.

Choice D is incorrect because two graphs of linear equations in the xy-plane can have only , , or infinitely many points of
intersection.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 7efe5495
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Algebra Systems of two

linear equations in
two variables

ID: 7efe5495

The solution to the given system of equations is . What is the value of ?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 7efe5495 Answer

Correct Answer: C

Rationale
Choice C is correct. It's given by the first equation in the system that . Substituting for in the equation
yields , or .

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 71189542
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Algebra Systems of two

linear equations in
two variables

ID: 71189542

A group of 202 people went on an overnight camping trip, taking 60 tents with
them. Some of the tents held 2 people each, and the rest held 4 people each.
Assuming all the tents were filled to capacity and every person got to sleep in a
tent, exactly how many of the tents were 2-person tents?

A. 30

B. 20

C. 19

D. 18

ID: 71189542 Answer

Correct Answer: C
Rationale
Choice C is correct. Let x represent the number of 2-person tents and let y represent the number of 4-person tents. It is given
that the total number of tents was 60 and the total number of people in the group was 202. This situation can be expressed
as a system of two equations, and . The first equation can be rewritten as .
Substituting for y in the equation yields . Distributing and combining like
terms gives . Subtracting 240 from both sides of and then dividing both sides by
gives . Therefore, the number of 2-person tents is 19.

Alternate approach: If each of the 60 tents held 4 people, the total number of people that could be accommodated in tents
would be 240. However, the actual number of people who slept in tents was 202. The difference of 38 accounts for the 2-

person tents. Since each of these tents holds 2 people fewer than a 4-person tent, gives the number of 2-person
tents.

Choice A is incorrect. This choice may result from assuming exactly half of the tents hold 2 people. If that were true, then the
total number of people who slept in tents would be ; however, the total number of people who slept in
tents was 202, not 180. Choice B is incorrect. If 20 tents were 2-person tents, then the remaining 40 tents would be 4-person
tents. Since all the tents were filled to capacity, the total number of people who slept in tents would be
; however, the total number of people who slept in tents was 202, not 200. Choice D is
incorrect. If 18 tents were 2-person tents, then the remaining 42 tents would be 4-person tents. Since all the tents were filled
to capacity, the total number of people who slept in tents would be ; however, the total
number of people who slept in tents was 202, not 204.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 6a87902f
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Algebra Systems of two

linear equations in
two variables

ID: 6a87902f

At how many points do the graphs of the given equations intersect in the xy-plane?

A. Zero

B. Exactly one

C. Exactly two

D. Infinitely many

ID: 6a87902f Answer

Correct Answer: A

Rationale
Choice A is correct. A system of two linear equations in two variables, and , has zero points of intersection if the lines
represented by the equations in the xy-plane are distinct and parallel. The graphs of two lines in the xy-plane represented by
equations in slope-intercept form, , are distinct if the y-coordinates of their y-intercepts, , are different and are
parallel if their slopes, , are the same. For the two equations in the given system, and , the
values of are and , respectively, and the values of are both . Since the values of are different, the graphs of
these lines have different y-coordinates of the y-intercept and are distinct. Since the values of are the same, the graphs of
these lines have the same slope and are parallel. Therefore, the graphs of the given equations are lines that intersect at zero
points in the xy-plane.

Choice B is incorrect. The graphs of a system of two linear equations have exactly one point of intersection if the lines
represented by the equations have different slopes. Since the given equations represent lines with the same slope, there is
not exactly one intersection point.

Choice C is incorrect. The graphs of a system of two linear equations can never have exactly two intersection points.

Choice D is incorrect. The graphs of a system of two linear equations have infinitely many intersection points when the lines
represented by the equations have the same slope and the same y-coordinate of the y-intercept. Since the given equations
represent lines with different y-coordinates of their y-intercepts, there are not infinitely many intersection points.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID f75bd744
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Algebra Systems of two

linear equations in
two variables

ID: f75bd744

In the given system of equations, is a constant. If the system has no solution, what is the value of ?

ID: f75bd744 Answer

Correct Answer: 8

Rationale
The correct answer is . The given system of equations can be solved using the elimination method. Multiplying both sides
of the second equation in the given system by yields , or . Adding this equation to
the first equation in the given system, , yields , or
. Subtracting from both sides of this equation yields
, or . If the given system has no solution, then
the equation has no solution. If this equation has no solution, the coefficients of on each side of
the equation, and , must be equal, which yields the equation . Dividing both sides of this equation by
yields . Thus, if the system has no solution, the value of is .

Alternate approach: A system of two linear equations in two variables, and , has no solution if the lines represented by the
equations in the xy-plane are parallel and distinct. Lines represented by equations in the form , where , ,
and are constant terms, are parallel if the ratio of the x-coefficients is equal to the ratio of the y-coefficients, and distinct if
the ratio of the x-coefficients are not equal to the ratio of the constant terms. Subtracting from both sides of the first
equation in the given system yields , or . Subtracting from
both sides of the second equation in the given system yields , or . The
ratio of the x-coefficients for these equations is , or . The ratio of the y-coefficients for these equations is . The
ratio of the constant terms for these equations is , or . Since the ratio of the x-coefficients, , is not equal to the ratio
of the constants, , the lines represented by the equations are distinct. Setting the ratio of the x-coefficients equal to the
ratio of the y-coefficients yields . Multiplying both sides of this equation by yields
, or . Therefore, when , the lines represented by these equations are parallel.
Thus, if the system has no solution, the value of is .

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 6e6a3241
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Algebra Systems of two

linear equations in
two variables

ID: 6e6a3241

Which of the following graphs in the xy-plane could be used to

solve the system of equations above?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 6e6a3241 Answer

Correct Answer: C
Rationale
Choice C is correct. The graph of a system of equations is the graph that shows the lines represented by each of the
equations in the system. The x-intercept of the graph of each given equation can be found by substituting 0 for y in each
equation: , or , and , or . The y-intercept of the graph of each equation can be found
by substituting 0 for x in each equation: , or , and or . Using these x- and y- intercept
values, the line that has equation passes through the points and , and the line that has equation

passes through the points and . Only the lines in choice C pass through these points and can be
used to solve the given system of equations.

Choices A, B, and D are incorrect. In choices A and B, neither line passes through and or and . In

choice D, although one line passes through and the other line doesn’t pass through and .

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID f5929f7a
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Algebra Systems of two

linear equations in
two variables

ID: f5929f7a

The solution to the given system of equations is . What is the value of ?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: f5929f7a Answer

Correct Answer: C

Rationale
Choice C is correct. It's given by the first equation in the system that . Substituting for in the second
equation in the system yields . Multiplying the left-hand side of this equation by and the right-hand side by
yields . Adding to both sides of this equation yields . Multiplying both sides of this equation by
yields .

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 74c03c21
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Algebra Systems of two

linear equations in
two variables

ID: 74c03c21

A bus traveled on the highway and on local roads to complete a trip of . The trip took . The bus traveled at
an average speed of on the highway and an average speed of on local roads. If is the
time, in hours, the bus traveled on the highway and is the time, in hours, it traveled on local roads, which system of
equations represents this situation?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 74c03c21 Answer

Correct Answer: B

Rationale
Choice B is correct. If the bus traveled at an average speed of on the highway for hours, then
the bus traveled miles on the highway. If the bus traveled at an average speed of on local roads for hours,
then the bus traveled miles on local roads. It's given that the trip was miles. This can be represented by the
equation . It's also given that the trip took hours. This can be represented by the equation .
Therefore, the system consisting of the equations and represents this situation.

Choice A is incorrect. This system of equations represents a situation where the trip was miles and took hours.

Choice C is incorrect. This system of equations represents a situation where the trip was miles and took hours, and
the bus traveled at an average speed of on the highway and on local roads.

Choice D is incorrect. This system of equations represents a situation where the bus traveled at an average speed of
on the highway and on local roads.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 70feb725
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Algebra Systems of two

linear equations in
two variables

ID: 70feb725

During a month, Morgan ran r miles at 5 miles per hour and biked b miles at
10 miles per hour. She ran and biked a total of 200 miles that month, and she biked
for twice as many hours as she ran. What is the total number of miles that Morgan
biked during the month?

A. 80

B. 100

C. 120

D. 160

ID: 70feb725 Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale
Choice D is correct. The number of hours Morgan spent running or biking can be calculated by dividing the distance she
traveled during that activity by her speed, in miles per hour, for that activity. So the number of hours she ran can be

represented by the expression , and the number of hours she biked can be represented by the expression . It’s given

that she biked for twice as many hours as she ran, so this can be represented by the equation , which can be
rewritten as . It’s also given that she ran r miles and biked b miles, and that she ran and biked a total of 200 miles.
This can be represented by the equation . Substituting for b in this equation yields , or .
Solving for r yields . Determining the number of miles she biked, b, can be found by substituting 40 for r in
, which yields . Solving for b yields .

Choices A, B, and C are incorrect because they don’t satisfy that Morgan biked for twice as many hours as she ran. In choice
A, if she biked 80 miles, then she ran 120 miles, which means she biked for 8 hours and ran for 24 hours. In choice B, if she
biked 100 miles, then she ran 100 miles, which means she biked for 10 hours and ran for 20 hours. In choice C, if she biked
120 miles, then she ran for 80 miles, which means she biked for 12 hours and ran for 16 hours.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 8a87c2c8
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Algebra Systems of two

linear equations in
two variables

ID: 8a87c2c8

The solution to the given system of equations is . What is the value of ?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 8a87c2c8 Answer

Correct Answer: C

Rationale
Choice C is correct. Adding the second equation in the given system to the first equation in the given system yields
. Adding like terms in this equation yields . Thus, the value of is
.

Choice A is incorrect. This is the value of , not . Choice B is incorrect. This is the value of , not .

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID ed92fb68
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Algebra Systems of two

linear equations in
two variables

ID: ed92fb68

If the system of equations above has solution ,

what is the value of ?

A. 0

B. 9

C. 18

D. 38

ID: ed92fb68 Answer

Correct Answer: C

Rationale
Choice C is correct. Adding the given equations yields 9x + 9y = 162. Dividing each side of the equation 9x + 9y = 162 by 9
gives x + y = 18.

Choice A is incorrect and may result from incorrectly adding the equations. Choice B is incorrect and may result from
conceptual or computational errors. Choice D is incorrect. This value is equivalent to y – x.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 19fdf387
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Algebra Systems of two

linear equations in
two variables

ID: 19fdf387

In the xy-plane, the graph of intersects the graph of at

the point . What is the value of a ?

A. 3

B. 6

C. 9

D. 12

ID: 19fdf387 Answer

Correct Answer: C

Rationale
Choice C is correct. Since the graph of intersects the graph of at the point , the ordered pair
is the solution to the system of linear equations consisting of and , and the value of a is the value of x
in the solution of this system. Since both and are equal to y, it follows that . Subtracting x from
and adding 6 to both sides of the equation yields . Therefore, the value of a is 9.

Choices A and B are incorrect and may result from a calculation or conceptual error in solving the system of equations
consisting of and . Choice D is incorrect. This is the value of b, not a.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID e1248a5c
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Algebra Systems of two

linear equations in
two variables

ID: e1248a5c

In the system of equations below, a and c are constants.

If the system of equations has an infinite number of solutions , what is the
value of a ?

A.

B. 0

C.

D.

ID: e1248a5c Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale
Choice D is correct. A system of two linear equations has infinitely many solutions if one equation is equivalent to the other.
This means that when the two equations are written in the same form, each coefficient or constant in one equation is equal
to the corresponding coefficient or constant in the other equation multiplied by the same number. The equations in the given
system of equations are written in the same form, with x and y on the left-hand side and a constant on the right-hand side of
the equation. The coefficient of y in the second equation is equal to the coefficient of y in the first equation multiplied by 3.
Therefore, a, the coefficient of x in the second equation, must be equal to 3 times the coefficient of x in the first equation:

, or .

Choices A, B, and C are incorrect. When , , or , the given system of equations has one solution.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 1362ccde
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Algebra Systems of two

linear equations in
two variables

ID: 1362ccde

The solution to the given system of equations is . What is the value of ?

ID: 1362ccde Answer

Correct Answer: 35

Rationale
The correct answer is . The first equation in the given system of equations defines as . Substituting for
in the second equation in the given system of equations yields . Applying the distributive property on
the left-hand side of this equation yields . Subtracting from each side of this equation yields
. Subtracting from each side of this equation yields . Substituting for in the first equation of
the given system of equations yields , or . Substituting for and for into the
expression yields , or .

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 52cb8ea4
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Algebra Systems of two

linear equations in
two variables

ID: 52cb8ea4

If is the solution to the system of equations above,

what is the value of ?

A.

B.

C. 5

D. 13

ID: 52cb8ea4 Answer

Correct Answer: B

Rationale
Choice B is correct. Subtracting the second equation, , from the first equation, , results in
, or . Combining like terms on the left-hand side of this equation yields
.

Choice A is incorrect and may result from miscalculating as . Choice C is incorrect and may result from
miscalculating as 5. Choice D is incorrect and may result from adding 9 to 4 instead of subtracting 9 from 4.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID c5082ce3
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Algebra Systems of two

linear equations in
two variables

ID: c5082ce3

The score on a trivia game is obtained by subtracting the number of incorrect

answers from twice the number of correct answers. If a player answered
40 questions and obtained a score of 50, how many questions did the player
answer correctly?

ID: c5082ce3 Answer

Rationale
The correct answer is 30. Let x represent the number of correct answers from the player and y represent the number of
incorrect answers from the player. Since the player answered 40 questions in total, the equation represents this
situation. Also, since the score is found by subtracting the number of incorrect answers from twice the number of correct
answers and the player received a score of 50, the equation represents this situation. Adding the equations in

the system of two equations together yields . This can be rewritten as . Finally, solving
for x by dividing both sides of the equation by 3 yields .

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 45a534d0
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Algebra Systems of two

linear equations in
two variables

ID: 45a534d0

In the given system of equations, is a constant. If the system has no solution, what is the value of ?

ID: 45a534d0 Answer

Correct Answer: -34

Rationale
The correct answer is . A system of two linear equations in two variables, and , has no solution if the lines
represented by the equations in the xy-plane are distinct and parallel. Two lines represented by equations in standard form
, where , , and are constants, are parallel if the coefficients for and in one equation are proportional
to the corresponding coefficients in the other equation. The first equation in the given system can be written in standard
form by subtracting from both sides of the equation to yield . The second equation in the given
system can be written in standard form by adding to both sides of the equation to yield . The coefficient
of in this second equation, , is times the coefficient of in the first equation, . For the lines to be parallel the
coefficient of in the second equation, , must also be times the coefficient of in the first equation, . Thus,
, or . Therefore, if the given system has no solution, the value of is .

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID adb0c96c
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Algebra Systems of two

linear equations in
two variables

ID: adb0c96c

The solution to the given system of equations is . What is the value of ?

ID: adb0c96c Answer

Correct Answer: 80

Rationale
The correct answer is . Subtracting the second equation in the given system from the first equation yields
, which is equivalent to , or . Dividing each side
of this equation by yields . Substituting for in the second equation yields . Adding to both
sides of this equation yields .

Alternate approach: Multiplying each side of the second equation in the given system by yields .
Subtracting the first equation in the given system from this equation yields , which is
equivalent to , or . Dividing each side of this equation by yields .

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID d7bf55e1
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Algebra Systems of two

linear equations in
two variables

ID: d7bf55e1

A movie theater sells two types of tickets, adult tickets for $12 and child tickets for
$8. If the theater sold 30 tickets for a total of $300, how much, in dollars, was
spent on adult tickets? (Disregard the $ sign when gridding your answer.)

ID: d7bf55e1 Answer

Rationale
The correct answer is 180. Let a be the number of adult tickets sold and c be the number of child tickets sold. Since the
theater sold a total of 30 tickets, a + c = 30. The price per adult ticket is $12, and the price per child ticket is $8. Since the
theater received a total of $300 for the 30 tickets sold, it follows that 12a + 8c = 300. To eliminate c, the first equation can be
multiplied by 8 and then subtracted from the second equation:

Because the question asks for the amount spent on adult tickets, which is 12a dollars, the resulting equation can be
multiplied by 3 to give 3(4a) = 3(60) = 180. Therefore, $180 was spent on adult tickets.

Alternate approach: If all the 30 tickets sold were child tickets, their total price would be 30($8) = $240. Since the actual total
price of the 30 tickets was $300, the extra $60 indicates that a certain number of adult tickets, a, were sold. Since the price
of each adult ticket is $4 more than each child ticket, 4a = 60, and it follows that 12a = 180.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 092ad67d
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Algebra Systems of two

linear equations in
two variables

ID: 092ad67d

The solution to the given system of equations is . What is the value of ?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 092ad67d Answer

Correct Answer: B

Rationale
Choice B is correct. Adding the first equation to the second equation in the given system yields
, or . Combining like terms in this equation yields .
Dividing both sides of this equation by yields . Thus, the value of is .

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect. This is the value of , not .

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID d909cd31
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Algebra Systems of two

linear equations in
two variables

ID: d909cd31

One of the two equations in a system of linear equations is given. The system has infinitely many solutions. Which of the
following could be the second equation in the system?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: d909cd31 Answer

Correct Answer: C

Rationale
Choice C is correct. It's given that the system has infinitely many solutions. A system of two linear equations has infinitely
many solutions when the two linear equations are equivalent. Dividing both sides of the given equation by yields
. Dividing both sides of choice C by also yields , so choice C is equivalent to the given
equation. Thus, choice C could be the second equation in the system.

Choice A is incorrect. The system consisting of this equation and the given equation has one solution, not infinitely many
solutions.

Choice B is incorrect. The system consisting of this equation and the given equation has one solution, not infinitely many
solutions.

Choice D is incorrect. The system consisting of this equation and the given equation has no solution, not infinitely many
solutions.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 9f6f96ff
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Algebra Systems of two

linear equations in
two variables

ID: 9f6f96ff

A wire with a length of inches is cut into two parts. One part has a length of inches, and the other part has a length of
inches. The value of is more than times the value of . What is the value of ?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 9f6f96ff Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale
Choice D is correct. It's given that a wire with a length of inches is cut into two parts. It's also given that one part has a
length of inches and the other part has a length of inches. This can be represented by the equation . It's
also given that the value of is more than times the value of . This can be represented by the equation .
Substituting for in the equation yields , or . Subtracting from
each side of this equation yields . Dividing each side of this equation by yields . Substituting for in
the equation yields , or .

Choice A is incorrect. This value represents less than half of the total length of inches; however, represents the length
of the longer part of the wire, since it's given that the value of is more than times the value of .

Choice B is incorrect. This value represents less than half of the total length of inches; however, represents the length
of the longer part of the wire, since it's given that the value of is more than times the value of .

Choice C is incorrect. This represents a part that is more than the length of the other part, rather than more than times
the length of the other part.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID f718c9cf
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Algebra Systems of two

linear equations in
two variables

ID: f718c9cf

The solution to the given system of equations is . What is the value of ?

ID: f718c9cf Answer

Correct Answer: 1.8, 9/5

Rationale
The correct answer is . Multiplying the first equation in the given system by yields . Subtracting the
second equation in the given system, , from yields
, which is equivalent to , or . Dividing both
sides of this equation by yields . The value of can be found by substituting for in either of the two given
equations. Substituting for in the equation yields , or . Subtracting
from both sides of this equation yields . Dividing both sides of this equation by yields , or .
Therefore, the value of is , or . Note that 9/5 and 1.8 are examples of ways to enter a correct answer.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 2875ba81
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Algebra Systems of two

linear equations in
two variables

ID: 2875ba81

The solution to the given system of equations is . What is the value of y?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 2875ba81 Answer

Correct Answer: A

Rationale
Choice A is correct. The given system of linear equations can be solved by the elimination method. Multiplying each side of
the second equation in the given system by yields , or . Subtracting this equation
from the first equation in the given system yields , which is equivalent to
, or .

Choice B is incorrect. This is the value of , not the value of .

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 466b87e3
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Algebra Systems of two

linear equations in
two variables

ID: 466b87e3

In the system of equations above, c is a constant. If the system has

no solution, what is the value of c ?

ID: 466b87e3 Answer

Rationale

The correct answer is . A system of two linear equations has no solution when the graphs of the equations have the
same slope and different y-intercepts. Each of the given linear equations is written in the slope-intercept form, ,
where m is the slope and b is the y-coordinate of the y-intercept of the graph of the equation. For these two linear equations,
the y-intercepts are and . Thus, if the system of equations has no solution, the slopes of the graphs of the two

linear equations must be the same. The slope of the graph of the first linear equation is . Therefore, for the system of

equations to have no solution, the value of c must be . Note that 1/2 and .5 are examples of ways to enter a correct
answer.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID e2e3942f
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Algebra Systems of two

linear equations in
two variables

ID: e2e3942f

In the system of equations above, a is a constant. If the system of equations

has no solution, what is the value of a ?

A.

B. 0

C. 1

D. 2

ID: e2e3942f Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale
Choice D is correct. A system of two linear equations has no solution when the graphs of the equations have the same slope
and different y-coordinates of the y-intercepts. Each of the given equations is written in the slope-intercept form of a linear
equation, , where m is the slope and b is the y-coordinate of the y-intercept of the graph of the equation. For
these two linear equations, the y-coordinates of the y-intercepts are different: and . Thus, if the system of equations
has no solution, the slopes of the two linear equations must be the same. The slope of the first linear equation is 2.
Therefore, for the system of equations to have no solution, the value of a must be 2.

Choices A, B, and C are incorrect and may result from conceptual and computational errors.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID f03465dc
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Algebra Systems of two

linear equations in
two variables

ID: f03465dc

For each real number , which of the following points lies on the graph of each equation in the xy-plane for the given system?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: f03465dc Answer

Correct Answer: A

Rationale
Choice A is correct. Dividing both sides of the second equation in the given system by yields , which is the
first equation in the given system. Therefore, the first and second equations represent the same line in the xy-plane. If the x-
and y-coordinates of a point satisfy an equation, the point lies on the graph of the equation in the xy-plane. Choice A is a
point with x-coordinate and y-coordinate . Substituting for and for in the equation
yields . Applying the distributive property to the left-hand side of this equation yields
. Combining like terms on the left-hand side of this equation yields , so the coordinates of the point
satisfy both equations in the given system. Therefore, for each real number , the point lies
on the graph of each equation in the xy-plane for the given system.

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 1e11190a
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Algebra Systems of two

linear equations in
two variables

ID: 1e11190a

Store A sells raspberries for per pint and blackberries for per pint. Store B sells raspberries for per pint
and blackberries for per pint. A certain purchase of raspberries and blackberries would cost at Store A or
at Store B. How many pints of blackberries are in this purchase?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 1e11190a Answer

Correct Answer: B

Rationale
Choice C is correct. It’s given that store A sells raspberries for per pint and blackberries for per pint, and a
certain purchase of raspberries and blackberries at store A would cost . It’s also given that store B sells raspberries
for per pint and blackberries for per pint, and this purchase of raspberries and blackberries at store B would
cost . Let represent the number of pints of raspberries and represent the number of pints of blackberries in this
purchase. The equation represents this purchase of raspberries and blackberries from store A
and the equation represents this purchase of raspberries and blackberries from store B. Solving
the system of equations by elimination gives the value of and the value of that make the system of equations true.
Multiplying both sides of the equation for store A by yields , or
. Multiplying both sides of the equation for store B by yields
, or . Subtracting both sides of the equation for
store A, , from the corresponding sides of the equation for store B, , yields
, or . Dividing both sides of this equationby
yields . Thus, pints of blackberries are in
this purchase.

Choices A and B are incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors. Choice D is incorrect. This is the number
of pints of raspberries, not blackberries, in the purchase.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID e77a76ce
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Algebra Systems of two

linear equations in
two variables

ID: e77a76ce

Which of the following systems of linear equations has no solution?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: e77a76ce Answer

Correct Answer: A

Rationale
Choice A is correct. A system of two linear equations in two variables, and , has no solution if the graphs of the lines
represented by the equations in the xy-plane are distinct and parallel. The graphs of two lines in the xy-plane represented by
equations in slope-intercept form, , where and are constants, are parallel if their slopes, , are the same
and are distinct if their y-coordinates of the y-intercepts, , are different. In the equations and , the
values of are each , and the values of are and , respectively. Since the slopes of these lines are the same and the y-
coordinates of the y-intercepts are different, it follows that the system of linear equations in choice A has no solution.

Choice B is incorrect. The two lines represented by these equations are a horizontal line and a line with a slope of that
have the same y-coordinate of the y-intercept. Therefore, this system has a solution, , rather than no solution.

Choice C is incorrect. The two lines represented by these equations have different slopes and the same y-coordinate of the y-
intercept. Therefore, this system has a solution, , rather than no solution.

Choice D is incorrect. The two lines represented by these equations are a vertical line and a horizontal line. Therefore, this
system has a solution, , rather than no solution.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID b3c7ca1d
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Algebra Systems of two

linear equations in
two variables

ID: b3c7ca1d

Which of the following systems of linear equations has no solution?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: b3c7ca1d Answer

Correct Answer: C

Rationale
Choice C is correct. A system of two linear equations in two variables, and , has no solution if the graphs of the lines
represented by the equations in the xy-plane are distinct and parallel. The graphs of two lines in the xy-plane represented by
equations in slope-intercept form, , where and are constants, are parallel if their slopes, , are the same
and are distinct if their y-coordinates of the y-intercepts, , are different. In the equations and ,
the values of are each , and the values of are and , respectively. Since the slopes of these lines are the same, and
the y-coordinates of the y-intercepts are different, it follows that the system of linear equations in choice C has no solution.

Choice A is incorrect. The lines represented by the equations in this system are a vertical line and a horizontal line. Therefore,
this system has a solution, , rather than no solution.

Choice B is incorrect. The two lines represented by these equations have different slopes and the same y-coordinate of the y-
intercept. Therefore, this system has a solution, , rather than no solution.

Choice D is incorrect. The two lines represented by these equations are a horizontal line and a line with a slope of that have
the same y-coordinate of the y-intercept. Therefore, this system has a solution, , rather than no solution.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 5e422ff9
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Algebra Systems of two

linear equations in
two variables

ID: 5e422ff9

In the solution to the system of equations

above, what is the value of y ?

A.

B.

C. 9

D. 15

ID: 5e422ff9 Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale
Choice D is correct. Multiplying both sides of by 5 results in . Multiplying both sides of by

2 results in . Subtracting the resulting equations yields , which simplifies to

. Dividing both sides of by results in .

Choices A and B are incorrect and may result from incorrectly subtracting the transformed equation. Choice C is incorrect
and may result from finding the value of x instead of the value of y.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 14360f84
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Algebra Systems of two

linear equations in
two variables

ID: 14360f84

In the given system of equations, is a constant. If the system has no solution, what is the value of ?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 14360f84 Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale
Choice D is correct. A system of two linear equations in two variables, and , has no solution if the lines represented by the
equations in the xy-plane are distinct and parallel. The graphs of two lines in the xy-plane represented by equations in the
form , where , , and are constants, are parallel if the coefficients for and in one equation are
proportional to the corresponding coefficients in the other equation. The first equation in the given system can be written in
the form by subtracting from both sides of the equation to yield . The second equation in
the given system can be written in the form by subtracting from both sides of the equation to yield
. The coefficient of in this second equation, , is times the coefficient of in the first equation, . For
the lines to be parallel, the coefficient of in the second equation, , must also be times the coefficient of in the first
equation, . Thus, , or . Therefore, if the given system has no solution, the value of is .

Choice A is incorrect. If the value of is , then the given system would have one solution, rather than no solution.

Choice B is incorrect. If the value of is , then the given system would have one solution, rather than no solution.

Choice C is incorrect. If the value of is , then the given system would have one solution, rather than no solution.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 567ac7ab
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Algebra Systems of two

linear equations in
two variables

ID: 567ac7ab

One of the two equations in a linear system is . The system has no

solution. Which of the following could be the other equation in the system?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 567ac7ab Answer

Correct Answer: B

Rationale
Choice B is correct. A system of two linear equations written in standard form has no solution when the equations are
distinct and the ratio of the x-coefficient to the y-coefficient for one equation is equivalent to the ratio of the x-coefficient to
the y-coefficient for the other equation. This ratio for the given equation is 2 to 6, or 1 to 3. Only choice B is an equation that
isn’t equivalent to the given equation and whose ratio of the x-coefficient to the y-coefficient is 1 to 3.

Choice A is incorrect. Multiplying each of the terms in this equation by 2 yields an equation that is equivalent to the given
equation. This system would have infinitely many solutions. Choices C and D are incorrect. The ratio of the x-coefficient to
the y-coefficient in (choice C) is to 2, or to 1. This ratio in (choice D) is 6 to 2, or 3 to 1.
Since neither of these ratios is equivalent to that for the given equation, these systems would have exactly one solution.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 2704399f
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Algebra Systems of two

linear equations in
two variables

ID: 2704399f

Which of the following systems of equations has the same solution as the
system of equations graphed above?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 2704399f Answer

Correct Answer: A
Rationale
Choice A is correct. The solution to a system of equations is the coordinates of the intersection point of the graphs of the

equations in the xy-plane. Based on the graph, the solution to the given system of equations is best approximated as .

In the xy-plane, the graph of is a horizontal line on which every y-coordinate is 0, and the graph of is a vertical

line on which every x-coordinate is . These graphs intersect at the point . Therefore, the system of equations in
choice A has the same solution as the given system.

Choices B, C, and D are incorrect. If graphed in the xy-plane, these choices would intersect at the points , , and

, respectively, not .

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 686b7cad
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Algebra Systems of two

linear equations in
two variables

ID: 686b7cad

A proposal for a new library was included on an election ballot. A radio show stated that times as many people voted in
favor of the proposal as people who voted against it. A social media post reported that more people voted in favor of
the proposal than voted against it. Based on these data, how many people voted against the proposal?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 686b7cad Answer

Correct Answer: A

Rationale
Choice A is correct. It's given that a radio show stated that times as many people voted in favor of the proposal as people
who voted against it. Let represent the number of people who voted against the proposal. It follows that is the number
of people who voted in favor of the proposal and , or , is how many more people voted in favor of the proposal
than voted against it. It's also given that a social media post reported that more people voted in favor of the proposal
than voted against it. Thus, . Since , the value of must be half of , or . Therefore,
people voted against the proposal.

Choice B is incorrect. This is how many more people voted in favor of the proposal than voted against it, not the number of
people who voted against the proposal.

Choice C is incorrect. This is the number of people who voted in favor of the proposal, not the number of people who voted
against the proposal.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 75012ee7
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Algebra Systems of two

linear equations in
two variables

ID: 75012ee7

For each real number , which of the following points lies on the graph of each equation in the xy-plane for the given system?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 75012ee7 Answer

Correct Answer: B

Rationale
Choice B is correct. The two given equations are equivalent because the second equation can be obtained from the first
equation by multiplying each side of the equation by . Thus, the graphs of the equations are coincident, so if a point lies on
the graph of one of the equations, it also lies on the graph of the other equation. A point lies on the graph of an
equation in the xy-plane if and only if this point represents a solution to the equation. It is sufficient, therefore, to find the
point that represents a solution to the first given equation. Substituting the x- and y-coordinates of choice B, and
, for and , respectively, in the first equation yields , which is equivalent to , or
. Therefore, the point represents a solution to the first equation and thus lies on the graph of each
equation in the xy-plane for the given system.

Choice A is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID 5e08a055
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Algebra Systems of two

linear equations in
two variables

ID: 5e08a055

One of the equations in a system of two linear equations is given. The system has no solution. Which equation could be the
second equation in the system?

A.

B.

C.

D.

ID: 5e08a055 Answer

Correct Answer: B

Rationale
Choice B is correct. A system of two linear equations in two variables, and , has no solution if the lines represented by the
equations in the xy-plane are parallel and distinct. Lines represented by equations in standard form, and
, are parallel if the coefficients for and in one equation are proportional to the corresponding coefficients
in the other equation, meaning ; and the lines are distinct if the constants are not proportional, meaning is not
equal to or . The given equation, , can be written in standard form by subtracting from both sides of
the equation to yield . Therefore, the given equation can be written in the form , where
, , and . The equation in choice B, , is written in the form , where
, , and . Therefore, , which can be rewritten as ; , which can be rewritten as
; and , which can be rewritten as . Since , , and is not equal to , it follows that
the given equation and the equation are parallel and distinct. Therefore, a system of two linear equations
consisting of the given equation and the equation has no solution. Thus, the equation in choice B could be
the second equation in the system.

Choice A is incorrect. The equation and the given equation represent the same line in the xy-plane.
Therefore, a system of these linear equations would have infinitely many solutions, rather than no solution.

Choice C is incorrect. The equation and the given equation represent lines in the xy-plane that are distinct
and not parallel. Therefore, a system of these linear equations would have exactly one solution, rather than no solution.

Choice D is incorrect. The equation and the given equation represent lines in the xy-plane that are distinct
and not parallel. Therefore, a system of these linear equations would have exactly one solution, rather than no solution.

Question Difficulty: Hard

Question ID b544a348
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Algebra Systems of two

linear equations in
two variables

ID: b544a348

In the solution to the system of equations

above, what is the value of x ?

ID: b544a348 Answer

Rationale
The correct answer is 7. Subtracting the second equation from the first equation eliminates the variable y.

Dividing both sides of the resulting equation by 4 yields x = 7.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID e53688cb
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Algebra Systems of two

linear equations in
two variables

ID: e53688cb

The solution to the given system of equations is . What is the value of ?

ID: e53688cb Answer

Correct Answer: 18

Rationale
The correct answer is . It's given by the second equation in the system that . Substituting for in the first
equation in the system, , yields . Subtracting from both sides of this equation yields .

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 27f5fff3
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Math Algebra Systems of two

linear equations in
two variables

ID: 27f5fff3

If a new graph of three linear equations is created using the system of equations shown and the equation ,
how many solutions will the resulting system of three equations have?

A. Zero

B. Exactly one

C. Exactly two

D. Infinitely many

ID: 27f5fff3 Answer

Correct Answer: A
Rationale
Choice A is correct. A solution to a system of equations must satisfy each equation in the system. It follows that if an
ordered pair is a solution to the system, the point lies on the graph in the xy-plane of each equation in the
system. The only point that lies on each graph of the system of two linear equations shown is their intersection point .
It follows that if a new graph of three linear equations is created using the system of equations shown and the graph of
, this system has either zero solutions or one solution, the point . Substituting for and for in the
equation yields , or . Since this equation is not true, the point does not lie
on the graph of . Therefore, is not a solution to the system of three equations. It follows that there are
zero solutions to this system.

Choice B is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice C is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Choice D is incorrect and may result from conceptual or calculation errors.

Question Difficulty: Hard