From Words to Algebra
Study this chapter to learn about:■ Word problems
■ Statistics
■ Rates
■ ProbabilityS
tudents of math at almost every level experience some intimidation when
confronted with lengthy word problems. The words in the situation often
seem to conceal the math necessary to get to the answer. This whole
chapter is devoted to ways to get past this difficulty. Word problems fall
into several predictable categories, and this chapter exploits this predictability
by providing you with a framework to implement each time the GRE throws a
certain type of word problem at you. This point will be reiterated throughout
the chapter, but it is worth mentioning now: your ultimate goal is to convert the
words into algebra. This is the most difficult and most important component of
these questions. Be sure to give yourself sufficient time to convert the words into
algebra. Once you have done so, it is simply a matter of implementing the algebraic
concepts that have been covered thus far in the book.Word Problems
Word problems tend to be intimidating for many test-takers. One of the most
common sentiments students express is concern over where to start. You are given
a sentence or several sentences and expected to somehow develop mathematical
relationships from these sentences. In the following pages, you will see step-by-step
approaches for dealing with these situations. Keep in mind that your ultimate goal
should always be the following:CHAPTER 12
31304-GRE-Test-2018_313-462.indd 313 12/05/17 12:03 pm