Measurement Practice Problems: GED Math

Problems

THE GED MATHEMATICS Exam emphasizes real-life applications of math concepts, and this is especially true of questions about measurement. This chapter reviews the basics of measurement systems used in the United States and other countries, performing mathematical operations with units of measurement, and the process of converting between different units.

1. 6 feet = ___ yard(s)
   1. 0.5
   2. 2
   3. 3
   4. 9
   5. 18
2. A recipe calls for 3 ounces of olive oil. Convert this measurement into cups.
   1. 0.3 cups
   2. 0.5 cups
   3. 0.375 cups
   4. 24 cups
   5. 2 cups
3. 48 inches = ___ yard(s)
   1. 
   2. 1
   3. 
   4. 2
   5. 84
4. A 2-liter bottle of soda contains approximately how many fluid ounces?
   1. 0.06 fluid ounces
   2. 968.96 fluid ounces
   3. 128.53 fluid ounces
   4. 256 fluid ounces
   5. 67.6 fluid ounces
5. The perimeter of a room (the measure around a room) is measured and found to be 652 inches. Trim for the room is sold by the foot. How many feet of trim must be purchased so that the room can be trimmed?
   1. 50 feet
   2. 54 feet
   3. 55 feet
   4. 60 feet
   5. 18 feet
6. Thomas is 6 feet 1 inch in height. His son is 3 feet 3 inches tall. What is the difference in their heights, in inches?
   1. 30 inches
   2. 32 inches
   3. 34 inches
   4. 36 inches
   5. 38 inches
7. Martha walks to school, a distance of 0.85 miles. What is the distance she walks to school in feet?
   1. 4,488 feet
   2. 6,212 feet
   3. 1,496 feet
   4. 5,280 feet
   5. 1,760 feet
8. A road race is 33,000 feet long. How many miles long is the race?
   1. 18.75 miles
   2. 6.25 miles
   3. 11,000 miles
   4. 38,280 miles
   5. 5 miles
9. A child's sandbox is being constructed in Tony's backyard. The sandbox is 6 feet wide and 5 feet long. Tony wants the sand to be at least 1.5 feet deep. The volume of sand in the box is 6 feet × 5 feet × 1.5 feet = 45 cubic feet. Convert the volume into cubic yards.
   1. 72 cubic yards
   2. 15 cubic yards
   3. 0.6 cubic yards
   4. cubic yards
   5. 5 cubic yards
10. Which of the following represents a method by which one could convert inches into miles?
    1. Multiply by 12 and then multiply by 5,280.
    2. Divide by 12 and then divide by 5,280.
    3. Add 12 and then multiply by 5,280.
    4. Multiply by 12 and then divide by 5,280.
    5. Divide by 12 and then multiply by 5,280.
11. Which of the following statements is false?
    1. 32 centimeters = 320 millimeters
    2. 3.2 meters = 3,200 millimeters
    3. 84 millimeters = 840 centimeters
    4. 84 millimeters = 0.084 meters
    5. 8.4 kilometers = 8,400 meters
12. It took Kaitlyn two hours to finish her homework. How many minutes did it take her to finish her homework?
    1. 90 minutes
    2. 60 minutes
    3. 100 minutes
    4. 120 minutes
    5. 150 minutes
13. Michael takes four minutes to shave each morning. How many seconds does Michael spend shaving each morning?
    1. 240 seconds
    2. 64 seconds
    3. 200 seconds
    4. 120 seconds
    5. 400 seconds
14. It is a commonly known fact that 0° C = 32° F, the freezing point of water. However, the conversion from 0° F to degrees Celsius is not as commonly known. Find the equivalent Celsius temperature for zero degrees Fahrenheit.
    1. 17.8° C
    2. –17.8° C
    3. –32° C
    4. 32° C
    5. –57.6° C
15. On the beach, the ratio of boogie boards to surfboards is 12 to 3. If there are 84 boogie boards, how many surfboards are there on the beach?
    1. 24
    2. 21
    3. 3
    4. 36
    5. 15
16. There are 48 people on a camping trip. Sixteen are females. What is the ratio of males to females?
    1. 3 to 1
    2. 16 to 48
    3. 1 to 3
    4. 32 to 48
    5. 2 to 1
17. Two numbers are in the ratio of 5 to 8. If the larger number is 72, what is the smaller number?
    1. 5
    2. 13
    3. 45
    4. 117
    5. 9
18. The ratio of lunch buyers to lunch packers is 7 to 2. How many people pack their lunches if 35 people buy their lunches?
    1. 123
    2. 42
    3. 10
    4. 119
    5. 7
19. A map has a scale that specifies inch = 1 mile. How wide is an island that measures 6.2 inches on the map?
    1. 24.8 miles
    2. 1.55 miles
    3. 4.43 miles
    4. 6.45 miles
    5. 7.6 miles
20. Sonia puts $700 in a savings account that pays 5% simple interest each year. Which expression tells how much Sonia will have in 18 months?

21. 4.5 miles = ___ feet
    1. 13.5
    2. 5,275.5
    3. 5,284.5
    4. 7,920
    5. 23,760
22. What is the sum of 2 pints 6 ounces + 1 cup 7 ounces?
    1. 1 quart
    2. 3 pints 1 cup 13 ounces
    3. 2 pints 5 ounces
    4. 3 pints 5 ounces
    5. 3 pints 1 cup
23. 35 mm = ___ cm
    1. 0.35
    2. 3.5
    3. 35
    4. 350
    5. 3,500
24. Susan wishes to create bows from 12 yards of ribbon. Each bow requires 6 inches of ribbon to make. How many inches of ribbon does Susan have?
    1. 18 inches
    2. 432 inches
    3. 48 inches
    4. 144 inches
    5. 24 inches
25. The living room in Donna's home is 182 square feet. How many square yards of carpet should she purchase to carpet the room?
    1. 9 square yards
    2. 1,638 square yards
    3. 61 square yards
    4. 21 square yards
    5. 546 square yards
26. Sofie needs to take teaspoon of cough syrup three times a day. Convert teaspoon into milliliters.
    1. 0.375 milliliter
    2. 3.75 milliliters
    3. 2.25 milliliters
    4. 22.5 milliliters
    5. 0.15 milliliter
27. 3.9 kiloliters = ___ milliliters
    1. 0.00000039
    2. 0.0000039
    3. 0.0039
    4. 3,900,000
    5. 39,000,000
28. The 1,500-meter race is a popular distance running event at track meets. How far is this distance in miles?
    1. 0.6214 mile
    2. 0.5 mile
    3. 0.9321 mile
    4. 2.4139 miles
    5. 0.4143 mile
29. 58.24 mm³ = ___ cm³
    1. 0.05824
    2. 5.824
    3. 58,240
    4. 582.4
    5. 5,824
30. Abigail is 5.5 feet tall. Which of the following is closest to this height?
    1. 17 meters
    2. 170 centimeters
    3. 1.7 kilometers
    4. 170 millimeters
    5. 0.17 kilometers
31. 62.4 meters ≈ ___ feet
    1. 1.58
    2. 2,456.7
    3. 65.7
    4. 19.01
    5. 205
32. Bill worked for a steel manufacturer for three decades. How many years did Bill work for the steel manufacturer?
    1. 15 years
    2. 60 years
    3. 30 years
    4. 6 years
    5. 12 years
33. How many minutes are there in 12 hours?
    1. 24 minutes
    2. 1,440 minutes
    3. 36 minutes
    4. 1,200 minutes
    5. 720 minutes
34. If the temperature is 10 degrees below zero Fahrenheit, what is the temperature in degrees Celsius?
    1. 12.2° C
    2. –37.6° C
    3. 26.4° C
    4. –23.3° C
    5. 14° C
35. A family drove 390 miles at a constant speed. It took 6 hours of driving time. What was the speed of their car?
    1. 55 miles per hour
    2. 60 miles per hour
    3. 234 miles per hour
    4. 65 miles per hour
    5. 35 miles per hour
36. Strawberries are 3 quarts for $4.98. How much will 10 quarts of strawberries cost?
    1. $14.98
    2. $16.60
    3. $25
    4. $49.80
    5. $4.98
37. Driving 60 miles per hour, it takes one-half hour to drive to work. How much additional time will it take to drive to work if the speed is now 40 miles per hour?
    1. 1 hour
    2. 2 hours
    3. 15 minutes
    4. one-half hour
    5. 45 minutes
38. The height of the Eiffel Tower is 986 feet. A replica of the tower made to scale is 4 inches tall. What is the scale of the replica to the real tower?
    1. 1 to 246.5
    2. 1 to 3,944
    3. 246.5 to 1
    4. 1 to 2,958
    5. 2,958 to 1
39. An 8" × 10" photograph is blown up to a billboard size that is in proportion to the original photograph. If 8" is considered the height of the photo, what would be the length of the billboard if its height is 5.6 feet?
    1. 7 feet
    2. 400 feet
    3. 56 feet
    4. 9 feet
    5. 156 inches
40. Kim put $5,000 into a savings account that pays 8% simple interest each year. What will her total be in 18 months?
    1. $600
    2. $4,600
    3. $5,000
    4. $5,600
    5. $420,000

 

Answers

1. b.   Every 3 feet equals 1 yard, so divide: 6 ft. ÷ 3 ft./yd. = 2 yards.
2. c.   Every 8 ounces equals 1 cup, so divide: 3 oz. ÷ 8 oz./c. = 0.375 cup.
3. c.   Every 36 inches equals 1 yard, so divide: 48 in. ÷ 36 in./yd. = yards, or written as a decimal.
4. e.   Each liter equals 0.264 gallon, so for 2 liters: 2 L × 0.264 gal./L = 0.528 gallon. A gallon equals 128 fluid ounces, so multiply: 0.528 gal. × 128 fl. oz./gal. = 67.584 fl. oz. ≈ 67.6 fluid ounces.
5. c.   12 inches equals 1 foot, so divide: 652 in. ÷ 12 in./ft. = 54.333 feet. Because trim is sold by the foot, round up. 55 feet must be purchased so that there is enough trim.
6. c.   One foot equals 12 inches so Thomas's height is 6 ft. × 12 in./ft. = 72 in. + 1 in. = 73 inches. His son's height is 3 ft. × 12 in./ft. = 36 in. + 3 in. = 39 inches. The difference between their heights is 73 in. – 39 in. = 34 inches.
7. a.   A mile is 5,280 feet, so to find 0.85 mile, multiply: 0.85 mi. × 5,280 ft./mi. = 4,488 feet.
8. b.   It takes 5,280 feet to make a mile. To find how many miles are in 33,000 feet, divide: 33,000 ft. ÷ 5,280 ft./mi. = 6.25 miles.
9. d.   One cubic yard requires 27 cubic feet. To find the number of cubic yards in 45 cubic feet, divide: 45 ft.3 ÷ 27 ft.3/yd.3 = cubic yards.
10. b.   Because the conversion is from smaller units to larger units, division is required. Every 12 inches equals 1 foot, so to figure out the number of feet in the given number of inches, divide by 12. Then, to figure out how many miles are in the calculated number of feet, divide by the number of feet in a mile, 5,280.
11. c.   There are 10 millimeters in 1 centimeter: 84 mm ÷ 10 mm/cm = 8.4 cm, not 840 cm.
12. d.   Multiply the number of minutes in an hour by the given number of hours. There are 60 minutes in an hour. Therefore, there are 120 minutes in 2 hours. Two hours × 60 minutes = 120 minutes.
13. a.   Multiply the number of seconds in a minute by the given number of minutes. There are 60 seconds in one minute. There are 240 seconds in 4 minutes. Four minutes × 60 seconds = 240 seconds.
14. b.   To convert 0° F into Celsius, substitute 0 for F in the equation C = (F – 32): C = (0 – 32) = (–32) = = –17.8; therefore, 0° F ≈–17.8° C.
15. b.   Set up a proportion based on the ratio of boogie boards to surfboards: . Cross multiply: 3 × 84 = 12 × s, so 252 = 12 × s. Divide by 12: 21 = s. There are 21 surfboards.
16. e.   You are given the total number of people (48) and the number of females (16), and are asked to find the ratio of males to females. There are 48 – 16 = 32 males on the trip. The ratio of males to females is or 2 to 1.
17. c.   Set up a proportion based on the ratio of the smaller number to the larger number: . Cross multiply: 8 × n = 5 × 72, so 8 × n = 360. Divide by 8: n = 45. The smaller number is 45.
18. c.   The proportion of lunch buyers to lunch packers is . Cross multiply to get 2 × 35 = 7 × p. Multiply 2 × 35 to get 70: 70 = 7 × p. Divide 70 by 7 to get 10 lunch packers.
19. a.   Set up a ratio of map to real. The proportion is . Cross multiply to get 1 × 6.2 = 0.25 × r. 6.2 = 0.25 × r. Divide 6.2 by 0.25 to get 24.8 miles long.
20. c.   Use the formula: interest = principal × rate × time, and substitute known values: interest = $700 × 5% × 18 months. Because the rate is a yearly rate, write 18 months as a number of years: 18 months = years, which reduces to years. Because fractions appear in all the answer choices, change the rate (5%) to a fraction: , which reduces to . Interest = $700 × × . The total will be the principal plus interest: $700 + ($700 × 20 × ).

21. e.   Each mile equals 5,280 feet. Because there are 4.5 miles, multiply: 4.5 mi. × 5,280 ft./mi. = 23,760 feet.
22. d.   The two amounts can be added as they are, but then the sum needs to be simplified. 2 pt. 6 oz. + 1 c. 7 oz. = 2 pints 1 cup 13 ounces. Note that the sum is written with the largest unit first and smallest unit last. To simplify, start with the smallest unit, ounces, and work toward larger units. Every 8 ounces makes 1 cup, so 13 ounces = 1 cup 5 ounces. Replace the 13 ounces with the 1 cup 5 ounces, adding the cup portions together: 2 pints 2 cups 5 ounces. Now note that 2 cups = 1 pint, so the sum can be simplified again combining this pint with the 2 pints in the sum. The simplified total is 3 pints 5 ounces.
23. b.   There are 10 millimeters in every centimeter, so divide: 35 mm ÷ 10 mm/cm = 3.5 cm.
24. b.   There are 36 inches in a yard. To find the number of inches in 12 yards, multiply: 12 yd. × 36 in./yd. = 432 inches.
25. d.   It takes 9 square feet to make a square yard. To find out how many square yards are in 182 square feet, divide: 182 ft.² ÷ 9 ft.²/yd.² = 20.22 square yards. Since Donna cannot purchase part of a square yard, she has to round up. She must purchase 21 square yards to have enough to carpet the room.
26. b.   One teaspoon equals 5 milliliters. Therefore, tsp. × 5 mL/tsp. = 3.75 mL.
27. d.   One kiloliter equals 1,000 liters: 3.9 kL × 1,000 L/kL = 3,900 L. Each liter equals 1,000 milliliters: 3,900 L × 1,000 mL/L = 3,900,000 mL.
28. c.   Each mile is about 1,609.34 meters. Divide to find out how many miles are equivalent to 1,500 meters: 1,500 m ÷ 1,609.34 m/mi. ≈ 0.9321 miles.
29. a.   There are 1,000 mm³ in 1 cm³. Divide to determine how many cm³ are in 58.24 mm³: 58.24 mm³ ÷ 1,000 mm³/cm³ = 0.05824 cm³.
30. b.   Since one foot equals about 0.3048 meter, 5.5 feet equals: 5.5 ft. × 0.3048 m/ft. = 1.6764 meters. Choice a is much too large. Now convert 1.6764 m into the remaining units given in the answer choices. 1.6764 m × 100 cm/m = 167.64 cm, which is very close to choice b. 1.6764 m ÷ 1,000 m/km = .0016764 km, which eliminates choices c and e. 1.6764 m × 1,000 mm/m = 1,676.4 mm, which is much higher than choice d. The answer is b: 170 cm.
31. e.   One meter is approximately 3.281 feet. Therefore, 62.4 m × 3.281 ft./m ≈204.73 ft. ≈205 feet.
32. c.   Multiply the number of years in a decade by the given number of decades. There are 10 years in a decade, so three decades × 10 years = 30 years.
33. e.   Multiply the number of minutes in an hour by the given number of hours. There are 60 minutes in each hour. Therefore, there are 720 minutes in 12 hours: 12 hours × 60 minutes = 720 minutes.
34. d.   To convert –10° F into Celsius, substitute –10 for F in the equation C = (F – 32): C = (–10 – 32) = (–42) = –. C is about equal to –23.3°, so –10° F ≈–23.3° C.
35. d.   Use the formula D = R × T. The distance is D = 390 miles, and the time is T = 6 hours. The speed is the missing term, R. Substitute known values: 390 = R × 6. Then divide by 6: 65 = R. The speed is 65 miles per hour.
36. b.   Set up a proportion of quarts of strawberries to price: . Cross multiply: 4.98 × 10 = 3 × p, so 49.8 = 3 × p. Divide by 3: 16.6 = p. The total price is $16.60.
37. c.   First, determine the distance to drive to work, using the formula D = R × T. Substitute known values and then multiply: D = 60 × , so D = 30. The distance to work is 30 miles.

Now, determine the time to drive to work at a rate of 40 miles per hour, again using the formula D = R × T. Substitute known values and then divide by 40: 30 = 40 × T, so 0.75 = T. The new time is 0.75 hour, or threequarters of an hour. The problem asks how much extra time it will take to drive. This is the difference between one-half hour and threequarters of an hour. Subtract the fractions, after changing one-half to two-quarters: . One-quarter of an hour is 15 minutes.

38. d.   A scale is a ratio of model to real, keeping the units consistent. The tower is 986 feet tall, and the replica is 4 inches; 986 feet must be converted to inches, by multiplying by 12: 986 times 12 is 11,832 inches. Set up the ratio of replica to real and simplify: .
39. a.   Set up a ratio of length to height. The proportion is . Cross multiply to get 8 × l = 10 × 5.6. Multiply 10 times 5.6 to get 8 × l = 56. Divide 56 by 8 to get 7 feet long.
40. d.   Use the formula: interest = principal × rate × time, and substitute known values: interest = $5,000 × 8% × 18 months, so interest = $400 × 18 months. Because the rate is a yearly rate, write 18 months as a number of years: 18 months = years, which reduces to years: $400 × = $600. The total will be the principal plus interest: $5,000 + $600 = $5,600.