What is the difference between an equation and an inequality

Equations are mathematical sentences that contain an equal sign. In addition, equations normally have only one solution. In other words, most equations aside from equations that have no solution and infinitely many solutions only have one number that you can substitute in for the variable that makes the equation true.

5 examples of equations are shown below.

1. - 4x + 1 = - 5 + 3x

2. - 6x = 0

3. ab = c

4. 1 - 9d = - 8d - 16

5. 1 = 3 (.7a - 1.8)

An inequality is a mathematical sentence which states that two expressions are not equal. There are several different symbols that can be used in an inequality. The inequality symbols are as follows.

< ⇒ less than

> ⇒ greater than

≤ ⇒ less than or equal to

≥ ⇒ greater than or equal to

5 examples of inequalities are shown below.

1. |y| > 2

2. - 2 (3x + 1) + 6x < 0

3. x - 2 > 5

4. 3 - 4y > - 13

5. - 12 ≤ 2 (3x - 4) - 8x

An equation is a mathematical statement that shows the equal value of two expressions while an inequality is a mathematical statement that shows that an expression is lesser than or more than the other