A worker earns $18 per hour and works 7.5 hours. After $24 is withheld for taxes, what is the take-home pay?

First compute gross pay: $18 × 7.5 hours = $135. Then subtract the withholding: $135 − $24 = $111 take-home pay. Multi-step word problems require doing the operations in the right order: earnings first (rate × hours), then deductions. To multiply $18 by 7.5, note 18 × 7 = 126 and 18 × 0.5 = 9, so 126 + 9 = $135. After taxes the worker keeps $111. The $135 distractor is the gross pay before the tax is subtracted, so read carefully for the final 'take-home' value.