Allen started out with x marbles. He doubled his number of marbles by buying an additional x marbles from Betty. Then he gave away one-third of all his marbles to his friend Clarence. At the end of the day, he had 16 marbles. How many marbles did he start out with

Question

Allen started out with x marbles.  He doubled his number of marbles by buying an additional x marbles from Betty.  Then he gave away one-third of all his marbles to his friend Clarence.  At the end of the day, he had 16 marbles.  How many marbles did he start out with

Reiny · Answer

start --- x after Betty deal --- 2x after give-away ---- (2/3)(2x) (4/3)x = 16 4x = 48 x = 12 check: start: 12 after doubling : 24 gave (1/3) of 24 or 8 away leaving him with 16

JESSICA · Answer

SO HE STARTED OUT WITH 12?