An inequality is similar
to an equation. There are two expressions separated by a symbol that indicates
how one expression is related to the other. In an equation such as 7x = 49,
the = sign indicates that the expressions are equivalent. In an inequality,
such as 7x > 49, the > sign indicates that the left side is larger than
the right side.
To solve the
inequality 7x > 49, we follow the same rules that we did for equations. In
this case, divide both sides by 7 so that x > 7. This means that x is a
value and it is always larger than 7, and never equal to or less than 7.
The "less
than" symbol (<) may also be seen in inequalities.
