Question

Two years ago, a baby elephant was 11 feet shorter than its mother. However, it grew three feet, and now its mother is only twice its size. What was the height of the baby elephant two years ago?

Answer 1

Here, we want to find the height of the baby Elephant two years ago.

Let the height of the baby Elephnat two years ago be x ft

The baby Elephant was 11 ft shortrer than the mother. This means that the height of the mother two years ago was (x + 11) ft

Presently, it grew 3 ft. Its height now will be (x + 3) ft

Also, the height of the mother is twice its size presently

This means;

2(x + 3) = x + 11

Let us open the brackets

2x + 6 = x + 11

2x - x = 11 -6

x = 5 ft

Two years ago, the baby Elephant was 5 ft in height