WORD PROBLEMS

WITH
SOLUTIONS

Compiled by:

MARK ROLANDO S. TABBU

BACHELOR OF SECONDARY EDUCATION

MAJOR IN MATHEMATICS (1A)

 Age problem

I. Phil is Tom's father. Phil is 35 years old. Three years ago, Phil was four times as old as his son was then. How
old is Tom now?

Solution:

Let t be Tom's age now. Then three years ago, Tom's age
would be t – 3. Four times Tom's age three years ago
would be 4(t – 3). Phil's age three years ago would be 35 –
3 = 32. A simple chart may also be helpful.

II. Lisa is 16 years younger than Kathy. If the sum of their ages is 30, how old is Lisa?

Solution:

Let Lisa equal x. Therefore, Kathy is x + 16. (Note that since Lisa is 16
years younger than Kathy, you must add 16 years to Lisa to denote
Kathy's age.) Now, use the problem to set up an equation. 

III. The present age of Jacob’s father is three times that of Jacob. After
5 years, sum of their ages would be 70 years. Find their present ages.

Solution: 
Jacob’s age = 15 years
Let Jacob’s age = x years
His father’s age = 3x years  Father’s age = 3(15)
= 45 years 
After 5 years 
Jacob’s age = x + 5 
Father’s age = 3x + 5
Sum of their age = 70

X + 5 + 3x + 5 = 70
4x + 10 = 70
4x = 60 
X = 15
IV. John’s mother’s age is 5 years more than the three times of John’s present age. Find John’s present age, if his
mother is 44 years old.

Solution:
 Let John’s age = x year

Then 3 x + 5 = 44 
3x = 44 – 5
3x = 39
x = 13 years
John’s present age = 13 years.

V. The present ages of Deklerk and Saniya are in the ratio 3:4. Five years from now, the ratio of their ages will be
4:5. Find their present ages.

Solution:
Let the present age of Deklerk and Saniya be 3x and 4x years respectively.

After 5 years
∴ Deklerk's present age = 3x
Deklerk's age = 3x + 5 
Saniya's age = 4x + 5 =3(5)
=15years 
(3x + 5) / (4x + 5) = 4 /5  Saniya's age = 4x
⇒ 5 (3x + 5) = 4 (4x + 5) = 4(5)
⇒ 15x + 25 = 16x + 20 
=20 years.
⇒ 15x - 16x = 20 -25 
⇒ -x = -5 
⇒x =5

Number problem
I. The sum of two numbers is 15. The difference of the same two numbers is 7. What are the two numbers?

Solution:

Let x stand for the larger number and y stand for the second number. The sum of the two numbers is
15. The difference is 7.

x + y = 15 

x – y = 7  ∴ The numbers are 11 and 4.

II. The sum of twice one number and three times another number is 23 and their product is 20. Find the numbers.

Solution:

Let x stand for the number that is being multiplied by 2 and y stand for the number being multiplied
by 3. 

2 x + 3 y = 23  x( y) = 20 

3 y = 23 – 2 x

23 x – 2 x 2  = 60 

2 x 2 – 23 x + 60 = 0 

(2 x – 15)(x – 4) = 0 

If , then   or   . 

If x = 4, then   or   . 

Therefore, this problem has two sets of solutions.

The number being multiplied by 2 is , and the number being multiplied by 3 is  , or the number
being multiplied by 2 is 4 and the number being multiplied by 3 is 5.
III. Quadrilateral ABCD is inscribed in a circle. Given that m / A = (2x+12) °, m / C = (3x+18) ° and m / D = (2x-
15) °, what is m / D? Solution:
A B

In any quadrilateral inscribed in a circle, the sum of

any two opposite angles of a quadrilateral is 180
degrees.

D C
m/ A+ m / C = 180°
2x+12+3x+18 = 180°
5x = 150°
x = 30°

m/ D = (2x-15) °

= 2(30°)-15

= 45°

IV.

V.
 Work problem

I. Walter and Helen are asked to paint a house. Walter can paint the house by himself in 12 hours and Helen can
paint the house by herself in 16 hours. How long would it take to paint the house if they worked together?

Solution:

Let T = time working together

A = the time for person A working alone

B = the time for person B working alone.

II. Tom and Jerry have to stuff and mail 1000 envelopes for a new marketing campaign. Jerry can do the job alone
in 6 hours. If Tom helps, they can get the job done in 4 hours. How long would it take Tom to do the job by
himself?

Solution:

Let T = time working together

A = the time for Tom working alone

B = the time for Jerry working alone.

III. One pipe can fill a swimming pool in 10 hours, while another pipe can empty the pool in 15 hours. How long
would it take to fill the pool if both pipes were accidentally left open?

Solution:

Let T = time working together

A = the time for person A working alone

B = the time for person B working alone.

IV. One roofer can put a new roof on a house three times faster than another. Working together they can roof a house
in 5 days. How long would it take the faster roofer working alone?

Solution:

Let T = time working together

A = the time for person A working alone

B = the time for person B working alone.

V. Triplets, Justin, Jason, and Jacob are working on a school project. Justin can complete the project by himself in 6
hours, Jason can complete the project by himself in 9 hours, and Jacob can complete the project by himself in 8
hours. How long would it take the triplets to complete the project if they work together?

Solution:

Let T = time working together

A = the time for Justin working alone

B = the time for Jayson working alone.

C =the time for Jacob working alone.

 Uniform Motion/Distance Problem

I. How long will it take a bus traveling 72 km/hr to go 36 kms?

Solution:

Therefore, it will take one‐half hour for the bus to travel 36 km at 72 km/hr.

II. How fast in miles per hour must a car travel to go 600 miles in 15 hours?

Solution:

So, the rate is 40 miles per hour.

III. Mrs. Benevides leaves Burbank at 9 a.m. and drives west on the Ventura Freeway at an average speed of 50
miles per hour. Ms. Twill leaves Burbank at 9:30 a.m. and drives west on the Ventura Freeway at an average
speed of 60 miles per hour. At what time will Ms. Twill overtake Mrs. Benevides, and how many miles will
they each have gone?

Solution:

Let t stand for the time Ms. Twill drives before overtaking Mrs. Benevides. Then Mrs. Benevides drives

for   hours before being overtaken.

rate r x time = distance d

t
Ms. Twill 60 t 60 t
mph
Mrs. Benevides 50
mph

Ms. Twill overtakes Mrs.

starting time: 9:30 + 2:30 = 12 noon. Since Ms. Twill has traveled for
2.5 hours at 60 mph, she has traveled 2.5 × 60, which is 150 miles. So,
Mrs. Benevides is overtaken at 12 noon, and each has traveled 150
miles.
IV. Bob leaves his house traveling toward John’s house driving 65 miles per hour. An hour later, John leaves his
house traveling on the same road toward Bob’s house. John is traveling 50 miles per hour. It is 500 miles between
their houses. How many hours before Bob and John meet? Identify the given information and the unknown.
Solution:

Distance = Rate x Time

Bob 65 x+1
John 50 x

Distance Bob has traveled + Distance John has traveled = 500

65(x + 1) + 50x = 500
65x + 65 + 50x = 500
115x + 65 = 500
115x = 435
x = 3.8
The time is 3.8 hours rounded to the nearest tenth.
Bob and John will cross paths after 3.8 hours.

V. A bus leaves town A traveling toward town B. At the same time a car leaves town B traveling toward town A. The
speed of the bus is 50 miles per hour and the speed of the car is 60 miles per hour. The distance between the two
towns is 2000 miles. How many hours until the bus and car meet? Identify the given information and the
unknown.
Solution:
Distance = Rate x Time
Bus 50x 50 x
Car 60x 60 x

Distance the Bus has traveled + Distance the Car has traveled = 2000
50x + 60x = 2000
110x = 2000
x = 18.2
The time is 18.2 hours rounded to the nearest tenth. The bus and car will cross paths after 18.2 hours.

Money problem
I. Tamar has four more quarters than dimes. If he has a total of $1.70, how many quarters and dimes does he have?

Solution:

Let x stand for the number of dimes, then x + 4 is the number of quarters. Therefore, .10 x is the total
value of the dimes, and .25(x + 4) is the total value of the quarters.

number value amount of money

dimes x .10 .10x
quarters x + 4 .25 .25(x + 4)

So, there are two dimes. Since there are four more quarters, there must be six quarters.

II. Sid has $4.85 in coins. If he has six more nickels than dimes and twice as many quarters as dimes, how many
coins of each type does he have?

Solution:

  Let x stand for the number of dimes. Then x + 6 is the number of nickels, and 2x is the number of quarters.
Setting up the following chart can be helpful. 

number value amount of money

dimes x .10 .10x
nickels x + 6 .05 .05(x + 6)
quarters 2x .25 .25(2x)

So, there are seven dimes. Therefore, there are thirteen nickels and fourteen quarters.
 Mixture problem

I. Coffee worth $1.05 per pound is mixed with coffee worth 85¢ per pound to obtain 20 pounds of a mixture worth
90¢ per pound. How many pounds of each type are used?

Solution:

Let the number of pounds of $1.05 coffee be denoted as x. Therefore, the number of pounds of 85¢‐per‐pound coffee
must be the remainder of the twenty pounds, or 20 – x.

cost per lb. x amount in = total cost of each

lbs.
$1.05 coffee $1.05 x $1.05 x
$ .85 coffee $ .85 20–x $ .85(20–x)
mixture $ .90 20 $ .90(20)

Therefore, five pounds of coffee worth $1.05 per pound are

used. And 20 – x, or 20 – 5, or fifteen pounds of 85¢‐per‐
pound coffee are used. 

II. Solution A is 50% hydrochloric acid, while solution B is 75% hydrochloric acid. How many liters of each solution
should be used to make 100 liters of a solution which is 60% hydrochloric acid?

Solution:

Now, let x stand for the number of liters of solution A. Therefore, the number of liters of solution B must be the
remainder of the 100 liters, or 100 – x.

% of acid liters concentration of acid

solution A 50% x .50 x
solution B 75% 100–x .75(100–x)
new solution 60% 100 .60(100)

Therefore, using the chart, 60 liters of solution A

and 40 liters of solution B are used.
 III.

IV.
V.
 Investment problem

I. Alex invested $500 and received $650 after three years. What had been the interest rate?  

Solution:

Interest earned = A - P 

Interest earned = 650 - 500 = 150

P = 500

T = 3 years

The interest formula is I = PRT

150  = 500 x R x 3

150 = 1500 x R

150 / 1500  = R

0.1  = R

(0.1 x 100) %  = R

10 % = R

So, the interest rate is 10%. 

II. Arthur invests his inheritance of $24000 in two different accounts which pays 6% and 5% annual interest. After
one year, he received $1340 in interest. How much did he invest in each account?  
Solution:
Let "x" be the money invested at 6% rate.

Then, the money invested at 5% rate = 24000 - x

Step 1.
 Step 3.
Step 2.
0.06x + 1200 - 0.05x = Total interest
I = (24000 - x) (0.05) (1)
0.01x + 1200 = Total interest
I = (24000 - x) (0.05)

Step 5.
Step 4.
24000 - x  = 24000 - 14000 
0.01x + 1200  = $1340
24000 - x  = 10000 
0.01x + 1200  = $1340
So, the money invested at 6% rate is $14000 and 5% rate is $10000.
0.01x  = $140
III. Part of $5000 was invested at 5% and the other part at 6%.
The 6% investment yielded $135 more in profit than the other investment. How much money was invested at each
rate?

Solution:

Let "x" be the money invested at 6% rate.

Then, the money invested at 6% rate = 5000 - x

I = PRT

Interest earned at 5% rate is

The
I  =  (x)(0.05)(1) difference
between the
interests
I  =  0.05x earned at 6%
and 5% is
Interest earned at 6% rate is $135. 

(300 -
I  =  (5000 - x)(0.06)(1)
0.06x) -
(0.05x)  = 
I  =  (5000 - x)(0.06) 135

I  =  300 - 0.06x 300 - 0.06x -

0.05x
 = 135

300 - 0.11x 

= 1
35
 300 - 135 

So, the money invested at 5% rate is $1500 and 6% rate is $3500.

IV. Bill has invested in two savings accounts. One earns 5% and the other earns 8%. The total amount invested is
$2,100 and the total interest earned for the year is $153. How much is invested in each account?

Solution:
Formula: Principal x Rate = Interest
Interest at 5% 0.05x Interest at 8% 0.08(2,100 – x)

The total amount of interest earned in a year was given to be $153.

Savings at 5% Interest + saving at 8% Interest = Total Interest earned in one year

0.05x + 0.08(2100 - x) = 153

0.05 + 168 - 0.08x = 153

-0.03x + 168 = 153

-0.03x = -15

x = 500

$500 is invested in the savings at 5%.

(2100 – X) = 2100 - 500 = 1,600 invested in savings at 8%.

V. Julie has invested in two savings accounts. One earns 10% and the other earns 15%. She invests $200 more in the
account that earns 15%. The total interest earned for one year is $230. How much is invested in each account?

Solution:

Formula: Principal x Rate = Interest

Interest at 10% 0.10x Interest at 15% 0.15(x + 200)

The total amount of interest earned for a year is $230.

Savings at 10% Interest + saving at 15% Interest = Total Interest earned in one year
0.10x + 0.15(x + 200) = 230
0.10x + 0.15x + 30 = 230
0.25x + 30 = 230
0.25x = 200 $800 is invested in the savings at 10%.
Since (x + 200) is invested at 15%, (800 + 200) or
X =800
1,000 is invested in savings at 15%.

Clock word problem

1. A clock sounds to indicate the time of 3 o'clock. At what time between 3 and 4 will the hour and minute needles
overlap?

X is the arch that describes the needle hourly.

(15 + x) is the arch that describes the minute hand.

15 + x = 12x

x = 15/11 min

The needles will overlap at 3:16 and 21 seconds. 

2. A clock sounds to indicate the time of 2 o'clock. At what time will its
needles form a right angle for the first time?

Turning clockwise, the needles will form a right angle approximately at 2:25.
Therefore, let x be the arc that describes the hour needle.

x is the arc that describes the hour needle.

25 + x, is the arc that describes the minute hand.

25 + x = 12x

x = 25/11 min

The clock will form a 90 ° angle 

3. A faucet takes 3 hours to fill a water tank and another faucet takes four hours to fill a tank of the same size. How long
will it take to fill a tank of the same size if both faucets are distributing water together into the same tank?

In one hour the first faucet fills 1/3 of the tank. SOLUTION:

In one hour the second faucet fills 1/4 of the tank.

In one hour two together faucets will have filled:

7x = 12       x = 12/7 hours 

4. The angle between the minute hand and the hour hand of a clock when the time is 4: 20

Solution: Angle traced by hour hand in 

Angle traced by min. hand in 20 min. = 

 Required angle = (130 - 120) º = 10º.

5. At what time between 7 and 8 o'clock will the hands of a clock be in the same straight line but not together?

Here H = 7.
Hands of the clock will point in opposite directions at
REFERENCES:

https://www.cliffsnotes.com/study-guides/algebra/algebra-i/word-problems/quiz

https://www.ask-math.com/algebra-age-problems.html

http://www.mesacc.edu/~scotz47781/mat120/notes/work/work_probs.html

https://www.math10.com/en/algebra/word-problems.html
https://ms.pleasantvilleschools.com/ourpages/auto/2016/9/9/60059842/Lesson%2025e%20Mixture%20Word

%20Problems.pdf

http://www.indianhills.edu/_myhills/courses/MAT056/documents/lu06_motion.pdf

https://www.onlinemath4all.com/interest-word-problems-worksheet.html
https://www.superprof.co.uk/resources/academic/maths/algebra/equations/linear-word-problems.html 
Http://questionpaper.org/clock/
https://www.careerbless.com/aptitude/qa/clock.php