Thomas and his friends took 1 / 4 * 200 = 50 bars. The total number of bars left in the box was 200 - 50 = 150 bars. Since there are five of them sharing, each of them got 50 / 5 = 10 bars. After a friend returned 5 bars, there were 150 + 5 = 155 bars in the box. Piper took five fewer bars, that is 50 - 5 = 45 bars. The total remaining bars left in the box is 155 - 45 = 110 bars.
The answer: 110
Reverse engineering the question: A chocolate box contains 200 bars. Thomas and his 4 friends take 1/4 of the bars and decide to divide them equally between them. One of Thomas's friends doesn't like chocolate bars very much and returns 5 of his bars to the box. Later, his sister Piper comes home and takes 5 fewer bars than those taken in total by Thomas and his friends so she can also share with her friends. What's the total number of bars left in the box?


Reasoning and answer: He needs 500 / 50 = 10 bags of flour. That cost 20 * 10 = $200. He needs 10 * .2 = $2 worth of salt. So everything cost 1000 + 200 + 2 = $1202. He makes 20 * 500 = $10,000 selling tickets. So he makes a profit of 10000 - 1202 = $8798.
The answer: 8798
What was the question?
Question: Tom wants to make the world's largest dough ball. He needs 500 pounds of flour and he can buy 50-pound bags of flour for $20. He also needs 10 pounds of salt and salt cost $.2 a pound. He also spends $1000 promoting everything. He then sells tickets for $20 each and sells 500 tickets. How much money did he make?


5 minutes for picking up toys, 20 minutes to vacuum, 15 minutes on windows and 10 minutes on furniture is 5 + 20 + 15 + 10 = 50 minutes. After 4 weeks, she has spent 4 weeks * 50 minutes / week = 200 minutes cleaning the living room.
The answer: 200
Reverse engineering the question: Once a week, it takes Kitty 5 minutes to pick up toys and straighten the living room. It takes another 20 minutes to vacuum the living room floor, seating and drapes. She spends 15 minutes cleaning the windows and 10 minutes dusting the furniture. After 4 weeks, how long has Kitty spent cleaning just the living room?


Reasoning and answer: Lance throws this many pebbles into the lake 4 x 3 = 12. He throws this many more pebbles than Candy 12 - 4 = 8 pebbles.
The answer: 8
What was the question?
Question: Candy throws 4 pebbles into the lake. Lance throws in 3 times as many pebbles as Candy. How many more pebbles did Lance throw compared to Candy?


Boris' mountain has an elevation 2,500 feet shorter than Hugo's mountain, or 10,000 - 2,500 = 7500 feet above sea level. If Hugo climbed his mountain 3 times, his total climbing distance would be 3 * 10,000 = 30,000 feet. To climb a total of 30,000 feet, Boris would need to need to climb his mountain 30,000 / 7,500 = 4 times.
The answer: 4
Reverse engineering the question: Hugo's mountain has an elevation of 10,000 feet above sea level. Boris' mountain has an elevation that is 2,500 feet shorter than Hugo's mountain. If Hugo climbed his mountain 3 times, how many times would Boris need to climb his mountain to have climbed the same number of feet as Hugo?


On "TOP" books the bookstore made 13 * 8 = $104. The "ABC" books, on the other hand, were sold for a total of 4 * 23 = $92. The difference between earnings from these two books is 104 - 92 = $12.
The answer: 12
Reverse engineering the question:
At a certain bookstore, the best-selling book, "TOP," costs $8. The least-selling book, "ABC," costs $23. Thirteen "TOP" books and four "ABC" books were sold last week. What is the difference in the bookstore's earnings on these two books last week?