Explanation:
Let the first number be represented as
[tex]=x[/tex]Let the second number be represented as
[tex]=y[/tex]The sum of the two numbers is 16.
This can be represented below as
[tex]x+y=16----(1)[/tex]One number is 4 less than 3 times the other
This can be represented below as
[tex]y=3x-4----(2)[/tex]Step 1:
Substitute equation (2) in equation (1)
[tex]\begin{gathered} x+y=16 \\ x+3x-4=16 \\ 4x-4=16 \\ add\text{ 4 to both sides} \\ 4x-4+4=16+4 \\ 4x=20 \\ divide\text{ both sides by 4} \\ \frac{4x}{4}=\frac{20}{4} \\ x=5 \end{gathered}[/tex]Step 2:
Substitute x=5 in equation (1)
[tex]\begin{gathered} x+y=16 \\ 5+y=16 \\ substract\text{ 5 from both sides} \\ 5-5+y=16-5 \\ y=11 \end{gathered}[/tex]Hence,
The final answers are
[tex]\Rightarrow11,5[/tex]