Exam in ALGEBRA

1. A carpenter and his helper together can repair a house in 10 days. It takes the helper 5 days longer than the
carpenter to do the repair when each works alone. How many days would it take the helper to do the repair if he is
to work alone?
a.22.8 days b. 7.2 days c. 17.8 days d. 12.2 days
12
2. In the expansion ( x +4 y ) , the numerical coefficient of the 5th term is,
a. 63,630 b. 126,720 c. 506,880 d. 253,440
16
1
3. Solve the 6th term of the expansion of ( ) 2a
−3 .
−66939 −66339 66923 66989
a. 11 b. 11 c. 11 d.
276 a 128 a 214 a 258 a11
4. What is the sum of the coefficients of the expansion of( 2 x−1 )20 ?
a. 0 b. 1 c. 2 d. 3
5. What is the sum of the coefficients of the expansion of ( x + y−z )8?
a. 0 b. 1 c. 2 d. 3
6. What is the lowest common factor of 10 and 32?
a.3.2 b. 2 c. 8 d. 5
7. Two friends Adrian and Melvin are respectively 5 and 8 years old. In how many years will the ratio of their ages be
3:4?
a. 4 b. 5 c. 6 d. 7
8. The arithmetic mean of 80 numbers is 55. If two numbers namely 250 and 850 are removed, what is the arithmetic
mean of the remaining numbers?
a.42.31 b. 45 c. 35.13 d. 80
9. Roy and RR can jog around a circular park in 8 and 12 minutes, respectively. If they start at the same instant from
the same place, in how many minutes will they pass each other if they jog around the track in the same direction?
a.15 min b. 20 min c. 24 min d. 25 min
10. Find the 15th term of the progression 1/4, 1/7, 1/10,…
a. 46 b.1/56 c. 1/46 d. 56
11. Determine the sum of the positive valued solution to the simultaneous equations:
xy=15 , yz=35 , zx=21
a. 15 b. 16 c. 17 d. 18
12. Seven carpenters and 5 masons earn a total of 2,300 per day. At the same rate, of pay 3 carpenters and 8 masons
earn 2,040. What are the wages per day of a carpenter and a mason?
a. 200 and 180 b. 300 and 210 c. 210 and 170 d. 270 and 150
13. Determine how much water should be evaporated from 50 kg of 30% salt solution to produce a 60% solution. All
percentages are by weight.
a. 25 kg b. 35 kg c. 15 kg d. 18 kg
3
14. ( a−b ) =?
a. a 3−3 a2 b+3 a b2 +b 3 b. a 3−3 a2 b−3 a b2−b 3
3 2 2 3
c. a +3 a b+ 3 a b −b d. a 3−3 a2 b+3 a b2 −b3
15. A boat going across a lake 8 km wide proceeds 2 km at a certain speed and then completes the trip at a speed of
½ km/hr. faster. By doing this, the boat arrives 10 minutes earlier than if the original speed had been maintained.
Find the original speed of the boat.
a. 5 km/hr. b. 4 km/hr. c. 8 km/hr. d. 6 km/hr.
16. If z varies directly as x and inversely as y2, if x = 1 and y = 2, then z = 2. Find z when x = 3 and y = 4.
a. 1.5 b. 3 c. 2.5 d. 3.5
3 2
17. The polynomial x + 4 x −3 x +8 is divided by x−5 , then the remainder is,
a. 175 b. 140 c. 218 d. 200
18. Find the remainder if we divide 4 y 3+ 18 y 2 +8 y −4 by ( 2 y+ 3 ) .
a. 10 b. 11 c. 15 d. 13
19. Find the mean proportional of 4 and 36.
a. 60 b. 28 c. 12 d. 16
20. 71. The arithmetic mean of two numbers is 5, and their harmonic mean is 24/5. Find the numbers.
a. 3 and 5 b. 4 and 6 c. 2 and 6 d. 4 and 4
21. 72. The equation whose roots are the reciprocal of the roots of 2 x2 −3 x −5=0 is ,
a. 5 x 2+3 x−2=0 b. 2 x2 +3 x−5=0
c. 3 x 2−3 x+2=0 d. 2 x2 +5 x−3=0
22. Determine k so that the equation 4 x2 + kx+1=0 will have just one real solution.
a. 3 b. 4 c. 5 d. 6
23. The number 0.123123123123… is
a. rational b. irrational c. imaginary d. transcendental
24. A storage battery discharges at a rate which is proportional to the charge. If the charge is reduced by 50% of its
original value at the end of 2 days, how long will it take to reduce the charge to 25% of its original charge?
a. 2.5 days b. 3 days c. 3.5 days d. 4 days
25. The resistance of a wire varies directly with its length and inversely with its area. If a certain piece of wire 10 m long
and 0.10 cm in diameter has a resistance of 100 Ω, what will its resistance be if its uniformly stretched so that its
length becomes 12m?
a. 100 b. 120 c. 132 d. 144
26. Given that w varies directly as the product of x and y and inversely as the square of z and that w = 4 when x = 2
and y = 6 and z = 3. Find the value of w when x = 1, y = 4 and z = 2.
a. 1 b. 2 c. 3 d. 4
27. If x varies directly as y and inversely as z, and x = 14 when y = 7 and z = 2, find the value of x when y = 16 and z =
4.
a. 4 b. 8 c. 12 d. 16
28. The time required for an elevator to lift a weight and the distance through which it is to be lifted and inversely as the
power of the motor. If it takes 30 seconds for a 10 hp motor to lift 100 lbs through 50 feet, what size of motor is
required to lift 800 ilbs in 40 seconds through 40 feet.
a. 46 b. 47 c. 48 d. 49
29. A bookstore purchased a best-selling price book at Php 200.00 per copy. At what prize should this be sold so that,
giving a discount, the profit is 30%?
a. 153 b. 294 c. 357 d. 461
30. Gravity causes a body to fall 16.1 ft in the first second, 48.3 in the 2 nd second, 80.5 in the 3rd second. How far did
the body fall during the 10th second?
a. 245.6 ft b. 365.7 ft c. 365.7 ft d. 305.9 ft
31. A besiege fortress is held by 5700 men who have provisions for 66 days. If the garrison losses 20 men each day,
for how many days can the provisions hold out?
a. 76 b. 77 c. 78 d. 79
32. In the “Gulf War” in the Middle East, the allied forces captured 6400 of Saddam’s soldiers and with provisions on
hand it will last for 216 meals while feeding 3 meals a day. The provision lasted 9 more days because of daily
deaths. At an average, how many died per day?
a. 18 b. 19 c. 20 d. 21
33. The 3 term of harmonic progression is 15 and the 9 term is 6. Find the 11th term.
rd th

a. 3 b. 4 c. 5 d. 6
th
34. Find the 4 term of the progression ½, 0.2, 0.125,…
a. 1/9 b. 1/10 c. 1/11 d. 1/12
35. The 4 term of a G.P. is 216 and the 6 term is 1944. Find the 8th term.
th th

a. 17496 b. 27496 c. 37496 d. 47496

36. Determine x so that: x ,2 x+ 7 ,10 x−7 will be a geometric progression.
a. 4, -4/9 b. 5, -5/8 c. 6, -6/7 d. 7, -7/6
37. If one third of the air in a tank is removed by each stroke of an air pump, what fractional part of the total air is
removed in 6 strokes?
a. 0.64 b. 0.73 c. 0.82 d. 0.91
38. How many terms of the progression 3,5,7…must be taken in order that their sum will be 2600?
a. 4 b. 45 c. 50 d. 54
39. In a pile of logs, each layer contains one more log than the layer above and the top contains just one log. If there
are 105 logs in the pole, how many layers are there?
a. 12 b. 14 c. 16 d. 18
th
40. The numbers 28, x + 2, 112 form a G.P. What is the 10 term?
a. 11336 b.12336 c. 13336 d. 14336
41. The sum of the first 10 terms of a geometric progression 2, 4, 8,….
a. 1023 b. 2046 c. 3069 d. 4086
42. The seventh term is 56 and the twelfth term is -1792 of a geometric progression. Find the common ratio and the first
term. Assume the ratios are equal.
a. -2, 4/8 b. -1, 5/8 c. -1 6/8 d. -2, 7/8
43. In a benefit show, a number of wealthy men agreed that the first one to arrive would pay 10 centavos to enter and
each later arrive would pay twice as much as the preceding man. The total amount collected from all of them was
P104, 857.50. How many wealthy men paid?
a. 20 b. 21 c. 22 d. 23
44. A rubber ball is made to fall from a height of 50 feet and is observed to rebound 2/3 of the distance it falls. How far
will the ball travel before coming to rest if the ball continues to fall in this manner?
a. 200 ft. b. 225 ft. c. 250 ft. d. 275 ft.
45. Find the sum of the infinite geometric progression 6, -2, 23…
a. 7/2 b. 8/3 c. 9/2 d. 11/3
46. Find the sum of 1, -1/5, 1/25….
a. 5/6 b. 4/5 c. ¾ d. 1/3
47. Find the ratio of an infinite geometric progression if the sum is 2 and the first term is ½.
a. ½ b. 2/3 c. ¾ d. 4/5
a+2 a+1 2 a a −2
48. Simplify: 7 −8 ( 7 ) +5 b −4 b+16 ( 7 ) +49 ( 7 )

a. −5a b. −6 a c. −7 a d.−8 a

49. Two workers A and B together can complete a job in 7 days. A works twice as fast as B. How many days would it
take B to do the job working alone?

a. 9 days b. 10.5 days c. 18 days d. 21 days

50. The sum of the first terms of an arithmetic progression is -3 while the sum of the of the first five terms of the same
arithmetic progression is 10. Find the first term.
a. -5 b. -4 c. -3 d. -2

51. Ann is eleven times as old as Beth. In a certain number of years, Ann will be five times as old as Beth and five
years after that, Ann will be three times as old as Beth. How old is Ann now?
a. 20 b. 21 c. 22 d. 23

52. Find the common ratio of a geometric progression whose first term is 1 and for which the sum of the first 6 terms is
28 times the sum of the first 3 terms
a. 2 b. 3 c. 4 d. 5

53. If x:y:z = 2:5:7 and 4x – y + 2z = 51, find z.

a. 21 b. 6 c. 15 d. 8
54. The sum of the digits of a three digit number is 14. The units digit is half the tens digit. If the digits are reversed, the
resulting number is 198 more than the original number. Find the original number.
a. 563 b. 842 c. 284 d. 921

55. The arithmetic mean of two positive numbers exceeds their geometric mean by 2. Find the smaller number if it is 40
less than the larger number.
a. 90 b. 101 c. 121 d. 81

56. A realtor bough a group of lots for $90, 000. He then sells them at a gain of $3, 750 per lot and has a total profit
equal to the amount he received for the last 4 lots sold. How many lots were originally in the group?
a. 10 b. 11 c. 12 d. 13

57. A man left Manila for Baguio City at past 9 AM. Between 4 to 5 hours, he arrived at Baguio and noticed the minute
and hour hands of his wrist watch interchanged in position. At what time did the man arrive at Baguio?
a. 1:45.53 PM b. 1:45.63 PM c. 1:45.73 PM d. 1:45.83 PM

58. A and B can do a piece of work in 42 days, B and C in 31 and A and C in 20 days. In how many days can all of
them do the work together?
a. 18.86 days b. 18.76 days c. 18.66 days d. 18.56 days

59. A passenger train x times as fast as a freight train takes x times as long to pass overtaking the freight train as it
takes to pass when the two trains are going in opposite directions. What is the value of x?
a. 2.31 b. 2.41 c. 2.51 d. 2.61

60. The first term of an arithmetic progression is 6 and the tenth term is 3 times and the second term. What is the
common difference?
a. 1 b. 2 c. 3 d. 4

61. A tank can be filled separately in 10 and 15 minutes respectively by two pipes. When a third pipe was used
simultaneously with the first two pipes, the tank can be filled in 4 minutes. How long would it take the third pipe
alone to fill the tank?
a. 12 min b. 11 min c. 10 min d. 9 min

62. A 2.5 liter container has a mixture of 25% alcohol. How many liters of the mixture must be drained out and replaced
with pure alcohol in order to obtain a mixture containing 40% alcohol?
a. 0.35 b. 0.40 c. 0.45 d. 0.50

63. On a trip, a man noticed that his car averaged 21 km per liter of gasoline except for the days he used the air
conditioning and then it averaged only 17 km per liter. If he used 91 liters of gasoline to drive 1, 751 km on how
many of those kilometers did he use the air conditioning?
a. 480 km b. 580 km c. 680 km d. 780 km

64. The 2nd, 4th and 8th terms of an arithmetic progression are themselves in geometric progression. Find the common
ratio of the geometric progression.
a. 1 b. 2 c. 3 d. 4

65. The 4th term of a geometric progression is 343 and the 6 th term is 16, 807. Find the 8th term.
a. 853,243 b. 835,432 c. 824, 533 d. 823, 543

66. Mary is twice as old as Ann was when Mary was as old as Ann is now. If Mary is 20 years old now, how old is Ann
now?
a. 15 b. 16 c. 17 d. 18
67. If the sum of two numbers is 1 and their product is also 1, find the sum of their cubes.
a. -3 b. -1 c. -2 d. -4

68. A tank can be filled by pipe A in half the time that pipe B can empty the same tank. When both pipes are operating,
the tank can be filled in 1 hour and 12 minutes. Find the time for pipe A to fill the tank alone.
a. 0.60 hr b. 0.50 hr c. 0.40 hr d. 0.30 hr

69. From a 2 liter vessel containing water, a certain amount was drained and replaced with pure alcohol. Later from the
mixture, the same amount was drained and again replaced with pure alcohol. What amount was removed each time
if the resulting mixture has 36% alcohol?
a. 0.50 L b. 0.40 L c. 0.30 L d. 0.20 L

70. If a man was left with 10 hectares than 40% of his land after selling 6 hectares more than 70% of his land, how
many hectares of land did he initially own?
a. 30 b. 40 c. 50 d. 60

71. A boy is 2 years more than twice as old as his younger brother. The two boys together are 17 years older than their
sister whose is 7 years younger than the older boy. How old is the sister?
a. 10 b. 15 c. 18 d. 22

72. The 3rd term of a harmonic progression is 15 and the 9 th term is 6. Find the 11th term.
a. 4 b. 8 c. 5 d. 7

73. It takes 10 seconds for two trains to pass each other when moving in opposite direction. If they move in the same
direction, the faster train could completely pass the slower train in 2 minutes. If the faster train is 120 meters long
and the slower train is 130 meters long, find the rate of the faster train.
a. 11 m/s b. 12 m/s c. 13m/s d. 14 m/s

74. The sum of the squares of two consecutive even integers is 340. Find the larger even integer.
a. 12 b. 14 c. 16 d. 18

75. A man can do a job in 8 hours, a boy can do the same job in 12 hours and a girl can do it in 16 hours. How long will
it take them to do the job if the man and the boy work together for one hour and then the boy and the girl finish the
job?
a. 6.54 hr b. 6.45 h c. 6.34 hr d. 6.43 hr

76. A piece of work can be done by women in 11 days and 30 men in 7 days. In how many days can the work be done
by 22 women and 21 men?
a. 4 b. 5 c. 3 d. 2

77. In a geometric progression, if the first term is x 2 and the common ratio is x4, which term is x18?
a. 4th b. 5th c. 6th d. 7th

78. A man can finish a certain job in 10 days. A boy can finish the same job in 15 days. If the man and the boy plus the
girl can finish the job in 5 days, how long will it take the girl to finish the job alone?
a. 30 b. 45 c. 15 d. 35

79. Solve for x in the equation (x + 3):10 = (3x – 2):8.

a. 1 b. 2 c. 3 d. 4

80. Simplify 3n – 3n – 1 – 3n – 2.
a. 5(3n – 2) b. 3(3n-2) c. 33n – 3 d. 33 - n
81. The bob of a pendulum swings through an arc of 24 cm long on its first swing. If each successive swing is
approximately 5/6 the length of the preceding swing, find the approximate total distance it travels before coming to
rest.
a. 121 cm b. 114 cm c. 144 cm d. 169 cm

82. Determine the 7th term of the arithmetic progression 3xy – y, 2xy, xy + y, …
a. 5y – 3xy b. 5y + 3xy c. 5x – xy d. 5x + xy

83. How many arithmetic means must be inserted between 1 and 36 so that the sum of the resulting arithmetic
progression will be 148?
a. 5 b. 6 c. 7 d. 8

84. If the first term and third term of a harmonic progression are 5/21 and 5/23 respectively, find the 6 th term.
a. 26/5 b. 27/5 c. 24/5 d. 23/5

85. A boat travels 12 km downstream and 16 km upstream in 12 hours. If the rate of the current is 3 kph, what is the
rate of the boat in still water?
a. 7 kph b. 8 kph c. 9 kph d. 10 kph

86. Fifty liters of acid solution contains 22% water. How many liters of water must be added to the solution so that the
resulting mixture will be 60% acid?
a. 15 b. 10 c. 20 d. 12

x+2
f (x )
87. If x−2 and g(y) = y + 2, find g(f(3)).
a. 4 b. 5 c. 6 d. 7

88. At what time between 7 and 8 AM will the minute hand and the hour hand of a clock be opposite one another?
a. 7:05:23 b. 7:05:25 c. 7:05:27 d. 7:05:29

89. A man can do a job with his son in 30 days. If after working together for 12 days, the son worked alone and finished
the job in 24 more days, how long will it take the son to do the job alone?
a. 40 days b. 45 days c. 50 days d. 55 days

90. Find the middle term of (x1/3 – y1/3)12 without expanding.

a. -924x2y2 b. 924x2y2 c. -492x2y2 d. 492x2y2

91. Mary is three times as old as Ricky. Three years ago, she was four times as old as Ricky was then. Find the sum of
their ages now.
a. 32 b. 24 c. 38 d. 36

92. An air plane went 360 miles in 2 hours with the wind and flying back the same route, it took 3 hours and 36 minutes
against the wind. What was its speed in still air?
a. 60 mph b. 120 mph c. 140 mph d. 160 mph

93. A ball is dropped from a height of 128 cm. If it always rebounds ½ of the height from which it falls, how far does it
travel after the fifth bounce?
a. 372 cm b. 374 cm c. 376 cm d. 378 cm

94. A tank can be filled by one pipe in 16 minutes, by a second pipe in 24 minutes and can be drained by a third pipe in
48 minutes. If all pipes are open, in how many minutes can the tank be filled?
a. 10 b. 12 c. 14 d. 16
95. If 3x3y = 27 and 2x + y = 5, find x.
a. 2 b. 3 c. 4 d. 5

96. If log 2 = x and log 3 = y, find log49

a. x/y b. xy c. y/x d. xy

97. A man drives a certain distance at 50 kph and a second man drives the same distance in 20 minutes less time at 60
kph. Find the distance traveled
a. 130 km b. 120 km c. 110 km d. 100 km

a. 8 b. 9 c. 10 d. 11

98. Which of the terms in the expansion of (y3 + y-1)10 will involve y2?
a. 6th terms b. 7th terms c. 8th terms d. 9th terms

99. Given the value of –(-1/27)-2/3.

a. 9 b. -9 c. 1/9 d. -1/9