Solving Word Problems: Balance Equations in Action

1. Sarah has 3 times as many apples as Tom. If Tom has x apples, write an equation to represent the number of apples Sarah has. How many apples do they have together if Tom has 4 apples?

• 12 apples

• 20 apples

• 8 apples

• 16 apples

2. A car rental company charges a flat fee of $20 plus $0.50 per mile driven. Write an equation to represent the total cost (C) for driving x miles. How much would it cost to drive 100 miles?

• $100

• $90

• $50

• $70

3. A school is selling tickets for a play. Adult tickets cost $10 and student tickets cost $5. If the total revenue from selling 30 tickets is $200, how many adult tickets were sold?

• 5

• 15

• 10

• 20

4. A gardener is planting flowers in rows. If each row has 5 flowers and there are y rows, write an equation for the total number of flowers. How many flowers are there if there are 8 rows?

• 40

• 50

• 25

• 30

5. A store sells pencils for $0.75 each and erasers for $1.25 each. If a student buys x pencils and y erasers for a total of $10, write an equation to represent this situation. How many pencils and erasers can the student buy if they buy 4 erasers?

• 3 pencils and 6 erasers

• 8 pencils and 2 erasers

• 5 pencils and 5 erasers

• 6 pencils and 4 erasers

6. A recipe requires 2 cups of flour for every 3 cups of sugar. Write an equation to represent the relationship between cups of flour (f) and cups of sugar (s). How many cups of flour are needed if you use 6 cups of sugar?

• 2 cups of flour

• 4 cups of flour

• 3 cups of flour

• 6 cups of flour

7. A train travels at a speed of 60 miles per hour. Write an equation to find the distance (d) traveled in x hours. How far does the train travel in 3 hours?

• 120 miles

• 150 miles

• 240 miles

• 180 miles

8. A bookstore sells novels for $12 each and magazines for $5 each. If a customer buys 5 novels and y magazines for a total of $70, write an equation to represent this situation. How many magazines did the customer buy?

• 2

• 1

• 4

• 3

9. A swimming pool is being filled with water at a rate of 10 gallons per minute. Write an equation to represent the total gallons of water (g) in the pool after x minutes. How many gallons are in the pool after 15 minutes?

• 150 gallons

• 75 gallons

• 200 gallons

• 100 gallons

10. A bike shop sells mountain bikes for $300 and road bikes for $200. If a customer spends $1,200 on bikes and buys x mountain bikes and y road bikes, write an equation to represent this situation. How many of each type of bike can the customer buy if they buy 2 mountain bikes?

• 3 mountain bikes and 1 road bike

• 2 mountain bikes and 3 road bikes

• 1 mountain bike and 5 road bikes

• 0 mountain bikes and 6 road bikes