Explain In words How To Solve This Problem

Words fail me.

The OP did come through in a duplicate thread which was closed by a moderator with the admonition “do your own homework.”

While several posts on that thread solved the problem, it didn’t seem to me that they clearly explained, in words, how to do so. My thought is that a verbal explanation would be helpful, and I assume not inappropiate on this board. I will leave the solving to the questioner.

(Helpful hint to our questioner–words like “please” and “thanks” go a long way towards having people want to help you. Your brusque style here smacks of trying to boss folks around, and may have alienated some who would have helped otherwise.)

*Explain In words How To Solve This Problem

                     Then Solve It 

                     (-6+(-9))+4*

In the language of math, anything set off in parentheses or brackets is a unit that must be taken as a whole. In this case, the outer parentheses contain -6+(-9). Whatever this equals will then be added to 4 to get the answer.

The reason -9 is in the inner parentheses is to make it clear that it is negative nine, rather than an instruction to subtract nine. It could be very confusing to have a plus sign and a minus sign right next to each other. Putting the negative nine in its own parentheses avoids that confusion.

So the stuff within the outer parentheses is negative six plus negative nine. To solve the probem, you first add negative six and negative nine. This sum (which is the value inside the parentheses), is then added to four. That sum (stuff inside the parentheses plus four) is the answer to the problem.