Joey is 2 years old now and Martina is 16 years old now.
Explanation:
You are comparing the ages of two people and at two different periods of time - the present and in 5 years time.
Let the present age of the younger cousin (Joey) be
x
years.
Martina is 14 years older now. Her age is
(
x
+
14
)
years
In 5 years time , they will both be 5 years older than they are now:
Joey will be
x
+
5
and
Martina will be
(
x
+
14
)
+
5
=
x
+
19
Joey's age, times 3, will be equal to Martina's age....
3
×
(
x
+
5
)
=
x
+
19
←
solve the equation
3
x
+
15
=
x
+
19
2
x
=
19
−
15
2
x
=
4
x
=
2
←
Joey is 2 years old now
Check: Joey is 2 and Martina is 2+14 = 16
In 5 years time: Joey will be 7 and Martina will be 21.
3
×
7
=
21
