Five years ago, an office supervisor was four times as old as his administrative assistant. If the supervisor is currently 45 years old, how old is the assistant today?

Answer and explanation

Correct answer: A. 15 years old

  1. Step 1: Supervisor's age 5 years ago = 45 - 5 = 40 years old. Step 2. Assistant's age 5 years ago = 40 / 4 = 10 years old. Step 3. Assistant's current age = 10 + 5 = 15 years old. Answer: 15 years old, finding the assistant was 10 years old five years ago (40 / 4) and adding 5. Why not the others: 10 years old was the assistant's age 5 years ago; 12 is an arithmetic miscalculation.

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