Solve the Arithmetic Expression: 12 + 7 - 5

Q: Why do I work left to right instead of doing all addition first?

Addition and subtraction have the same priority level, so you must work left to right. This ensures you follow the correct order of operations (PEMDAS/BODMAS).

Q: What if I accidentally did 7 - 5 first and got the same answer?

You got lucky this time! In $ 12 + 7 - 5 $, both methods give 14, but try $ 10 - 3 + 2 $ and you'll see the difference: left-to-right gives 9, but wrong order gives 5.

Q: Is there a trick to remember the left-to-right rule?

Think of reading! Just like you read words from left to right, you solve addition and subtraction from left to right. Same rule applies to multiplication and division.

Q: How can I double-check my arithmetic quickly?

Use inverse operations! Start with your answer and work backwards: 14 + 5 = 19 ✓19 - 7 = 12 ✓ If you get back to the original numbers, you're correct!

Order of Operations with Mixed Addition and Subtraction

Solve the following equation:

$12+7-5\text{ }=$

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Understand the problem

Solve the following equation:

$12+7-5\text{ }=$

Step-by-step solution

To solve the expression $12 + 7 - 5$ , follow these steps:

Add the first two numbers: $12 + 7 = 19$ .
Subtract the third number: $19 - 5 = 14$ .

Therefore, the final answer is

14

Final Answer

Key Points to Remember

Essential concepts to master this topic

Rule: Work left to right for same-level operations like addition and subtraction
Technique: First calculate 12 + 7 = 19, then subtract 19 - 5 = 14
Check: Verify by working backwards: 14 + 5 = 19, and 19 - 7 = 12 ✓

Common Mistakes

Avoid these frequent errors

Calculating subtraction before addition
Don't solve 7 - 5 first to get 12 + 2 = 14! This ignores left-to-right order and can give wrong answers in other problems. Always work from left to right when operations have the same priority level.

Practice Quiz

Test your knowledge with interactive questions

$$ 8 - 2 + 6 = $$

FAQ

Everything you need to know about this question

Why do I work left to right instead of doing all addition first?

Addition and subtraction have the same priority level, so you must work left to right. This ensures you follow the correct order of operations (PEMDAS/BODMAS).

What if I accidentally did 7 - 5 first and got the same answer?

You got lucky this time! In $12 + 7 - 5$ , both methods give 14, but try $10 - 3 + 2$ and you'll see the difference: left-to-right gives 9, but wrong order gives 5.

Is there a trick to remember the left-to-right rule?

Think of reading! Just like you read words from left to right, you solve addition and subtraction from left to right. Same rule applies to multiplication and division.

How can I double-check my arithmetic quickly?

Use inverse operations! Start with your answer and work backwards:

14 + 5 = 19 ✓
19 - 7 = 12 ✓

If you get back to the original numbers, you're correct!

What if the problem had parentheses like (12 + 7) - 5?

Parentheses don't change anything here! Since you already work left-to-right for addition and subtraction, $(12 + 7) - 5$ gives the same result as $12 + 7 - 5$ .

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