ANSWER
The width is 12 cm
EXPLANATION
The length L of the rectangle is 2 cm more than its width W. With this we have one equation:
[tex]L=W+2[/tex]Then the perimeter is 52cm, which is the sum of the sides of the rectangle:
[tex]P=W+W+L+L=2W+2L[/tex]Therefore the system to solve is:
[tex]\begin{cases}L=W+2 \\ 52=2W+2L\end{cases}[/tex]Using the substitution method we can solve just for W. Replace L in the second equation by its value in terms of W from the first equation:
[tex]52=2W+2(W+2)[/tex]Use the distributive property to eliminate the parenthesis:
[tex]52=2W+2W+4[/tex]Add like terms:
[tex]52=4W+4[/tex]And solve for W:
[tex]\begin{gathered} 4W=52-4 \\ 4W=48 \\ W=\frac{48}{4} \\ W=12 \end{gathered}[/tex]Therefore, the width of the rectangle is 12cm
