SAT Math : Percentage

Study concepts, example questions & explanations for SAT Math

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Example Questions

Example Question #21 : Percentage

What is the closest percent equal to the fraction ?

Possible Answers:

Correct answer:

Explanation:

The percent is a number over 100.  Set up the proportion to find the unknown value.

The closest answer is .

Example Question #21 : Percentage

Convert the following fraction to a percent, rounding to the nearest tenth:

Possible Answers:

Correct answer:

Explanation:

Reduce the fraction.

Set up the proportion such that some number is over 100.

Solve for , which is the percent.

Example Question #21 : Percentage

Express  as a percent. 

Possible Answers:

Correct answer:

Explanation:

To turn this fraction into a percent, let's write it as a decimal first. 

Now, let's set up a proportion to make this a percent.

Therefore, our answer is 

Example Question #2032 : Psat Mathematics

Your friend has 100 pounds of bacon and offers to share 45% of it with you.  If you promised your mom 30% and your cousin 25% of your share, how many pounds of bacon do you end up with?

Possible Answers:

20.25 pounds

24.75 pounds

13.5 pounds

11.25 pounds

45 pounds

Correct answer:

20.25 pounds

Explanation:

Your share = 45% of 100 pounds of bacon = .45 * 100 = 45 pounds

For mom and cousin = 30% + 25% =  55%

Percent left for you = 100% - 55% = 45%

45% of 45 pounds = .45 * 45 = 20.25 pounds

Example Question #3 : Whole And Part

A container has ten liters of a twenty percent sucrose solution by volume. How many liters of the solution should be removed from the container and then replaced by the same volume of a forty percent sucrose solution, so that the final solution is ten liters of a twenty-five percent sucrose solution?

Possible Answers:

4

2.5

1.25

0.5

2

Correct answer:

2.5

Explanation:

The final solution is going to have a concentration of twenty-five percent and a volume of 10 liters. The amount of sucrose in the solution is equal to the concentration (expressed as a decimal) multiplied by the total volume. Therefore, the final solution will have 25% • 10 = 0.25 • 10 = 2.5 liters of sucrose.

Let x be the amount of the solution that is removed and then replaced by the forty percent solution. The amount of twenty percent solution that will remain will be equal to 10 – x, because the final solution will still have ten liters. (The amount removed is replaced with the same amount, so the final volume of the solution is the same.)

So we have to get 2.5 liters of sucrose from the twenty percent solution and the forty percent solution combined. The amount of sucrose we will get from the twenty percent solution equals the volume of the twenty percent solution (which we established will be 10 – x) multiplied by twenty percent as a decimal.

Amount of sucrose from 20% solution = 0.20 • (10 – x)

The amount of sucrose we get from the forty percent solution will equal the product of x and forty percent (since we defined x as the amount of forty percent solution).

Amount of sucrose from 40% solution = 0.40x

Now, we need to add the amount of sucrose from the 20% and the 40% solutions, and then set this equal to 2.5, because ultimately we will have 2.5 liters of sucrose in the solution. We can write the equation as follows and then solve for x:

0.20 • (10 – x) + 0.40x = 2.5

Here is a table that we can also use to summarize the information discussed above.

Solution

0.20 • (10 – x) + 0.40x = 2.5

Distribute.

2 – 0.2x + 0.4x = 2.5

Combine x terms.

2 + 0.2x = 2.5

Subtract 2 from both sides.

0.2x = 0.5

Divide both sides by 0.2.

x = 2.5 liters

The answer is 2.5 liters. 

Example Question #2033 : Psat Mathematics

A total of 200,000 votes were cast for two opposing candidates. If the losing candidate received 40% of the vote, how many votes did the winning candidate receive?

Possible Answers:

80,000

100,000

120,000

50,000

Correct answer:

120,000

Explanation:

60% of 200,000 is 120,000

0.6 * 200,000 = 120,000

Example Question #2034 : Psat Mathematics

Becky and Jason are running for class president, and each of the 30 students in the class voted. Becky received 60% of the votes. How many students voted for Jason?

Possible Answers:

18

12

15

21

Correct answer:

12

Explanation:

If Becky received 60% of the vote, Jason must have received 40% of the vote. 40% is equal to 0.40. By multiplying the number of votes times the percentage, we can calculate how many votes Jason received.

0.40 * 30 = 12.

Example Question #1 : How To Find The Part From The Whole With Percentage

I ate 30% of an entire pizza. My friend Sally ate 20% of the remaining pizza. What percentage of the original pizza is left?

Possible Answers:

56%

44%

50%

70%

14%

Correct answer:

56%

Explanation:

After I eat 30% of the pizza, 70%, or 0.7, is left. Sally eats 20%, or 0.2 of that. So to compute how much of the original pizza Sally has eaten, we must multiply 0.7 by 0.2. We will arrive with 0.14 or 14%. Thus we subtract my the 30% of the pizza I ate and the 14% of the pizza Sally ate from 100% or the original whole, and we will arrive with 56%.

Example Question #2 : How To Find The Part From The Whole With Percentage

 

The pie chart illustrates how Carla allocates her money each week.

If she spends $200 on groceries each week, how much does she spend on rent?

Possible Answers:

350

1000

750

450

500

Correct answer:

350

Explanation:

1. 20% of Carla's whole budget is equal to $200. With this information, one can find Carla's weekly budget.

Set up the equation: 0.2b = 200 (b = budget).

b = 200/0.2 = 1000 = Carla's weekly budget

2. To find the amount Carla spends for rent, one needs to find what 35% of $1000 is.

0.35 x 1000 = 350

3. Because Carla spends 35% of her total budget on rent, she spends $350 on rent.

Example Question #2035 : Psat Mathematics

There are  pounds of cargo currently on a ship. After  pounds have been taken from the ship and transferred to a warehouse, then, in terms of  and , what percent of cargo is still on the ship?

Possible Answers:

\dpi{100} \small \left [\frac{100\left (p-m \right )}{p} \right ]\%

\dpi{100} \small \left [\frac{p-m}{100} \right ]\%

\dpi{100} \small \left [\frac{p}{100\left (p-m \right )} \right ]\%

\dpi{100} \small \left [\frac{100m}{p} \right ]\%

\dpi{100} \small \left [\frac{100p}{m} \right ]\%

Correct answer:

\dpi{100} \small \left [\frac{100\left (p-m \right )}{p} \right ]\%

Explanation:

If p is the number of pounds of cargo that is initially on the ship and m is the number of pounds of cargo that we transfer (or remove from the ship), we can find how many pounds of cargo are still on the ship after the transfer by the expression p – m. In order to model this as a percent, we would have to form a fraction, using the initial pounds of cargo, p, as the whole amount and p – m as the fractional part. 

So,

we would get \dpi{100} \small \frac{p-m}{p} as our fraction. 

However, this problem asks us to find the percent, so we would simply multiply by 100

\dpi{100} \small \left [\frac{100\left (p-m \right )}{p} \right ]\% will get our answer into percent form.

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