ASVAB · General

If a 15% tip on a meal is $9, what was the cost of the meal?

Correct answer

$60

A $45
B $60
C $54
D $72

Why this is the answer

If 15% of the meal = $9, then the meal cost = $9 ÷ 0.15 = $60. ASVAB Arithmetic Reasoning tests working backward from a percentage. Set up: 0.15 × (meal) = $9, so meal = 9 ÷ 0.15 = $60. Strategy: when given the result of a percentage and asked for the original, DIVIDE by the decimal form of the percentage. Check: 15% of $60 = 0.15 × 60 = $9. ✓ Common error: multiplying instead of dividing — remember you're finding the larger whole from a part.

Source: ASVAB Arithmetic Reasoning — Working Backward from Percent

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If a 15% tip on a meal is $9, what was the cost of the meal?

Why this is the answer

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