NEW HERE? LEARN MORE
closeclose
Last visit was: 26 Apr 2024, 01:43 It is currently 26 Apr 2024, 01:43
Decision Tracker
My Rewards
New posts
New comers' posts

Close
GMAT Club Daily Prep
Thank you for using the timer - this advanced tool can estimate your performance and suggest more practice questions. We have subscribed you to Daily Prep Questions via email.

Customized
for You

we will pick new questions that match your level based on your Timer History

Track
Your Progress

every week, we’ll send you an estimated GMAT score based on your performance

Practice
Pays

we will pick new questions that match your level based on your Timer History
Not interested in getting valuable practice questions and articles delivered to your email? No problem, unsubscribe here.
Go to My Error Log Learn more
Close
Request Expert Reply
Confirm Cancel

Susan spent one-third of her money on books and half of the remaining

SORT BY:
Date
Kudos
Tags:
Find Similar Topics 
Show Tags
Hide Tags
User avatar
L
Bunuel
Math Expert
Joined: 02 Sep 2009
Posts: 92923
Own Kudos [?]: 619090 [3]
Given Kudos: 81605
Send PM
CAT Tests Forum Quiz Mode
Susan spent one-third of her money on books and half of the remaining [#permalink] New post   29 Oct 2018, 07:11
3
Bookmarks
Expert Reply
00:00
A
B
C
D
E

Difficulty:

15% (low)

Question Stats:

85% (01:59) correct 15% (02:37) wrong based on 105 sessions
Hide Show timer Statistics
Susan spent one-third of her money on books and half of the remaining money on clothing. She then spent three-fourths of what she had left on food. She had $5 left over. How much money did she start with?


A. $60
B. $80
C. $120
D. $160
E. $180
ShowHide Answer
Official Answer
A
User avatar
L
Abhishek009
Board of Directors
Joined: 11 Jun 2011
Status:QA & VA Forum Moderator
Posts: 6072
Own Kudos [?]: 4690 [1]
Given Kudos: 463
Location: India
GPA: 3.5
WE:Business Development (Commercial Banking)
Send PM
GMAT ToolKit User
Re: Susan spent one-third of her money on books and half of the remaining [#permalink] New post   29 Oct 2018, 08:29
1
Kudos
Bunuel wrote:
Susan spent one-third of her money on books and half of the remaining money on clothing. She then spent three-fourths of what she had left on food. She had $5 left over. How much money did she start with?


A. $60
B. $80
C. $120
D. $160
E. $180


Let the amount of money she had be 12x

Amount spent on books = 4x
Amount spent on clothing = 4x
Amount spent on food = 3x
Amount left = x = $5

So, the total amount of money she had is $ 60, Answer must be (A)
User avatar
L
ScottTargetTestPrep
Target Test Prep Representative
Joined: 14 Oct 2015
Status:Founder & CEO
Affiliations: Target Test Prep
Posts: 18761
Own Kudos [?]: 22055 [1]
Given Kudos: 283
Location: United States (CA)
Send PM
Re: Susan spent one-third of her money on books and half of the remaining [#permalink] New post   30 Oct 2018, 19:11
1
Kudos
Expert Reply
Bunuel wrote:
Susan spent one-third of her money on books and half of the remaining money on clothing. She then spent three-fourths of what she had left on food. She had $5 left over. How much money did she start with?


A. $60
B. $80
C. $120
D. $160
E. $180


We can let the total amount of money Susan had = n.

So she spent n/3 on books, (1/2)(n - n/3) = (1/2)(2n/3) = n/3 on clothing and (3/4)(n - n/3 - n/3) = (3/4)(n/3) = n/4 on food. We can create the equation:

n/3 + n/3 + n/4 + 5 = n

Multiplying the equation by 12, we have:

4n + 4n + 3n + 60 = 12n

11n + 60 = 12n

60 = n

So she had $60 before she spent it on books, clothing and food.

Answer: A
avatar
B
Epistle
Intern
Intern
Joined: 28 Jan 2020
Posts: 6
Own Kudos [?]: 1 [1]
Given Kudos: 5
Send PM
Re: Susan spent one-third of her money on books and half of the remaining [#permalink] New post   15 Mar 2020, 03:54
1
Kudos
Abhishek009 wrote:
Bunuel wrote:
Susan spent one-third of her money on books and half of the remaining money on clothing. She then spent three-fourths of what she had left on food. She had $5 left over. How much money did she start with?


A. $60
B. $80
C. $120
D. $160
E. $180


Let the amount of money she had be 12x

Amount spent on books = 4x
Amount spent on clothing = 4x
Amount spent on food = 3x
Amount left = x = $5

So, the total amount of money she had is $ 60, Answer must be (A)






Please how did your get your 60,
from your calculations there is really no way x=$5
will turn to 60
what am i missing

please assist
User avatar
L
EgmatQuantExpert
e-GMAT Representative
Joined: 04 Jan 2015
Posts: 3726
Own Kudos [?]: 16843 [0]
Given Kudos: 165
Send PM
Re: Susan spent one-third of her money on books and half of the remaining [#permalink] New post   30 Oct 2018, 03:28
Expert Reply

Solution


Given:
    • Susan spent
      o \(\frac{1}{3}^{rd}\) of her money on books,
      o \(\frac{1}{3}^{rd}\)on clothing
      o \(\frac{1}{4}^{th}\) on food

    • She had $5 left over

To find:
    • The total money she had at the beginning

Approach and Working:
    • Let the initial amount be $X
    • Left over money = \((1 - \frac{1}{3} - \frac{1}{3} - \frac{1}{4}) * $X = $5\)
      o Implies, X = $5 * 12 = $60


Hence, the correct answer is Option A

Answer: A

avatar
S
MBAHOUSE
MBA House Admissions Consultant
Joined: 26 May 2022
Posts: 343
Own Kudos [?]: 70 [0]
Given Kudos: 0
Send PM
Re: Susan spent one-third of her money on books and half of the remaining [#permalink] New post   18 Jul 2022, 12:30
Expert Reply
Fractions and equations are current subject at the gmat test.
Attachments

D842126A-FA9A-4F6B-ABD6-4EF55AF20C22.jpeg
D842126A-FA9A-4F6B-ABD6-4EF55AF20C22.jpeg [ 280.96 KiB | Viewed 2600 times ]

User avatar
G
ThatDudeKnows
Tutor
Joined: 11 May 2022
Posts: 1092
Own Kudos [?]: 697 [0]
Given Kudos: 81
Send PM
Re: Susan spent one-third of her money on books and half of the remaining [#permalink] New post   18 Jul 2022, 13:15
Expert Reply
Bunuel wrote:
Susan spent one-third of her money on books and half of the remaining money on clothing. She then spent three-fourths of what she had left on food. She had $5 left over. How much money did she start with?


A. $60
B. $80
C. $120
D. $160
E. $180


We need something that's divisible by 3. B and D are out.
Let's just try C. If we need something smaller, it's A; if we need something larger, it's E.

She starts with $120.
She spends $40 on books and has $80 remaining.
She spends $40 on clothing and has $40 remaining.
She spends $30 on food and has $10 remaining. We want her to have $5 remaining, so $10 is too much. We need something smaller.

Answer choice A.
GMAT Club Bot
gmatclubot
Re: Susan spent one-third of her money on books and half of the remaining [#permalink]
18 Jul 2022, 13:15
Moderators:
Bunuel
Math Expert
92921 posts
yashikaaggarwal
Senior Moderator - Masters Forum
3137 posts

Powered by phpBB © phpBB Group | Emoji artwork provided by EmojiOne
Main navigation
GMAT Resources
Partners
MBA Resources
www.gmac.com|www.mba.com | | GMAT Club Rules | Terms and Conditions