Question

Ben and Shawnee are painting a room in the library. They started with 7 gallons of paint. On the first day, Ben used 3/4 gallon of paint and Shawnee used 3 1/2 gallons of paint. How many gallons of paint were left when they completed their first day of painting?

A. 2 3/4
B. 3 1/2
C. 3 3/4
D. 4 1/4
E. 6 1/4

Answer 1

After subtracting the paint used by Ben and Shawnee from the initial 7 gallons, we find that 2 3/4 gallons of paint are left, which is answer A.

Step-by-step explanation:

The question asks how much paint is left after Ben and Shawnee have completed their first day of painting. Initially, they had 7 gallons of paint. Ben used 3/4 gallon of paint, while Shawnee used 3 1/2 gallons of paint. To find out how much paint is left, we subtract the amount of paint they used from the initial amount.

First, convert Shawnee's usage into quarters to make it easier to subtract from gallons:
3 1/2 gallons = 3 gallons + 1/2 gallon
= 12/4 gallons + 2/4 gallons
= (12 + 2)/4 gallons
= 14/4 gallons
= 3.5 gallons, which is also 14 quarters of a gallon.

Now add Ben’s usage in quarters of a gallon to Shawnee’s:
3/4 gallon + 3.5 gallons (or 14/4 gallons) = 3/4 + 14/4 = (3 + 14) / 4 = 17/4 gallons.

Subtract this total usage from the initial amount:
7 gallons - 17/4 gallons = (28/4 gallons - 17/4 gallons) = 11/4 gallons = 2 3/4 gallons.

So, the correct answer is A. 2 3/4 gallons of paint were left after their first day of painting.