SOLUTION: If a boy is 3 times younger than his uncle.if the sum of their age is 64.how old is the boy and the uncle

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Question 1152797: If a boy is 3 times younger than his uncle.if the sum of their age is 64.how old is the boy and the uncle
Found 2 solutions by greenestamps, ikleyn:
Answer by greenestamps(13200) About Me  (Show Source):
You can put this solution on YOUR website!


The statement of the problem is nonsense.

The phrase "3 times younger than..." has no logical meaning.

Given a number -- say 40 -- "three times less than that number" means 40, minus 3 times 40 = 40-3(40) = 40-120 = -80.

But when we are talking about ages, that doesn't make any sense. If the uncle is 40 years old, and if the boy is 3 times younger than his uncle, then the boy's age is -80.

And of course that is nonsense.

If you want help with your problem, re-post it so that it makes sense.


Answer by ikleyn(52802) About Me  (Show Source):
You can put this solution on YOUR website!
.

Hey, I understand that you translate from your native language, which is not English.


English is VERY SPECIAL language, and has many features that other languages do not have.

And in opposite, it HAS NO some forms, that other languages have.


For example, this combination of words "a boy is 3 times younger than his uncle" HAS NO SENSE in English.

Instead of it, English-speaking people say "the uncle is three times as old as the boy" (!)

Then it makes sense (!) (!)

So, based on it, the answer to your problem is 16 years for the boy and 3*16 = 48 years for the uncle.

How to get it ? --- Very easy . . .

Let x be the age of the boy;  then the age of the uncle is 3x, and

    x + 3x = 64

    4x     = 64

     x     = 64/4 = 16


and  3x = 48.


Learn English !

Learn it from all possible sources --- from my post, for example (!)

Happy learning (!)


From which language do you translate ?