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TEAS practice test math: 24 questions with worked answers

The TEAS math section has 38 questions in 57 minutes, which is 90 seconds a question (ATI time limit). ATI splits the scored math questions into two areas: numbers and algebra (18) and measurement and data (16); the other 4 are unscored pretest questions (ATI exam details). The 24 questions below follow that split. Each has four options; tap "Show answer" for the answer and a short worked explanation.

These are our own practice questions, written for this page. They are not real TEAS questions and are not from ATI.

How to take this practice test

A worked example

A recipe uses 3/4 cup of broth for 6 servings. At the same rate, how much broth is needed for 10 servings?

A) 1 1/2 cups   B) 1 1/4 cups   C) 4 1/2 cups   D) 1 cup

Answer: B. Per serving: 3/4 ÷ 6 = 1/8 cup. Then 10 × 1/8 = 10/8 = 1 1/4 cups. The common slip is multiplying 3/4 by 6 and getting 4 1/2 (answer C): that scales the wrong way.

Numbers and algebra: questions 1 to 13

Fractions, decimals and percents, ordering numbers, ratios and rates, equations and inequalities, and word problems turned into equations.

1. What is 3/5 + 1/4?

  1. 4/9
  2. 17/20
  3. 4/20
  4. 7/10
Show answer

Answer: B, 17/20. Use the common denominator 20: 3/5 = 12/20 and 1/4 = 5/20, so the sum is 17/20. Adding tops and bottoms separately gives 4/9, the usual wrong answer.

2. What is 2 1/3 × 1 1/2?

  1. 2 1/6
  2. 3 1/2
  3. 3 1/6
  4. 2 1/2
Show answer

Answer: B, 3 1/2. Change to improper fractions first: 7/3 × 3/2 = 21/6 = 7/2 = 3 1/2. Multiplying the whole numbers (2 × 1) and the fractions (1/3 × 1/2) separately gives 2 1/6, which is wrong.

3. Which fraction equals 0.375?

  1. 3/8
  2. 3/4
  3. 37/100
  4. 5/8
Show answer

Answer: A, 3/8. 0.375 = 375/1000. Divide top and bottom by 125: 3/8. Check: 3 ÷ 8 = 0.375.

4. Which list is in order from least to greatest?

  1. 5/8, 64%, 0.65, 2/3
  2. 64%, 5/8, 0.65, 2/3
  3. 0.65, 64%, 5/8, 2/3
  4. 2/3, 0.65, 64%, 5/8
Show answer

Answer: A. Turn each into a decimal: 5/8 = 0.625, 64% = 0.64, 0.65, and 2/3 is about 0.667. Writing all four the same way is faster than comparing a fraction with a percent.

5. Solve for x: 4x − 7 = 2x + 9.

  1. 1
  2. 4
  3. 8
  4. 16
Show answer

Answer: C, 8. Subtract 2x from both sides: 2x − 7 = 9. Add 7: 2x = 16. Divide by 2: x = 8. Stopping at 2x = 16 gives 16. Check: 4(8) − 7 = 25 and 2(8) + 9 = 25.

6. A jacket priced $80 is 25% off. Sales tax of 8% is charged on the sale price. What is the total?

  1. $64.80
  2. $66.40
  3. $60.00
  4. $86.40
Show answer

Answer: A, $64.80. Sale price: $80 × 0.75 = $60. Tax: $60 × 0.08 = $4.80. Total $64.80. Combining the two percents first (80 × 0.83) gives $66.40, which taxes the full price instead of the sale price.

7. A patient's weight drops from 160 lb to 152 lb. What is the percent decrease?

  1. 5%
  2. 5.3%
  3. 8%
  4. 95%
Show answer

Answer: A, 5%. Percent change = change ÷ original = 8 ÷ 160 = 0.05 = 5%. Dividing by the new weight (8 ÷ 152) gives about 5.3%, the common slip.

8. In a class of 40 students, the ratio of women to men is 5:3. How many men are in the class?

  1. 24
  2. 15
  3. 25
  4. 8
Show answer

Answer: B, 15. The ratio has 5 + 3 = 8 parts, so each part is 40 ÷ 8 = 5 students. Men are 3 parts: 3 × 5 = 15. Women are 25, which is option C.

9. What is 18 − 3 × (4 − 2)² ÷ 6?

  1. 16
  2. 10
  3. 2
  4. 7
Show answer

Answer: A, 16. Parentheses: 4 − 2 = 2. Exponent: 2² = 4. Multiply and divide left to right: 3 × 4 = 12, then 12 ÷ 6 = 2. Subtract: 18 − 2 = 16. Subtracting first, (18 − 3) × 4 ÷ 6, gives 10.

10. A phone plan costs $25 a month plus $0.10 for each text. One month's bill is $31.40. How many texts were sent?

  1. 56
  2. 64
  3. 314
  4. 640
Show answer

Answer: B, 64. Write the equation: 25 + 0.10t = 31.40. Subtract 25: 0.10t = 6.40. Divide by 0.10: t = 64. Dividing the whole bill by 0.10 gives 314, which ignores the monthly fee.

11. Solve: −2x + 3 > 11.

  1. x > −4
  2. x < −4
  3. x > 4
  4. x < 4
Show answer

Answer: B, x < −4. Subtract 3: −2x > 8. Dividing by a negative number flips the sign: x < −4. Forgetting the flip gives option A. Check with x = −5: −2(−5) + 3 = 13, which is greater than 11.

12. An IV runs at 125 mL per hour. How many hours does it take to give 1 liter?

  1. 0.8
  2. 8
  3. 12.5
  4. 80
Show answer

Answer: B, 8 hours. 1 liter is 1,000 mL. Time = amount ÷ rate = 1,000 ÷ 125 = 8. Using 1 liter as 100 mL gives 0.8.

13. Round 7.0465 to the nearest hundredth.

  1. 7.04
  2. 7.05
  3. 7.046
  4. 7.1
Show answer

Answer: B, 7.05. The hundredths digit is 4. The digit after it is 6, which is 5 or more, so the 4 rounds up to 5: 7.05. Option C is rounded to the thousandth instead.

Measurement and data: questions 14 to 24

Metric and US units and converting between them, perimeter, area and volume, reading a table, and mean, median and range.

14. How many grams are in 2.5 kilograms?

  1. 250 g
  2. 2,500 g
  3. 25,000 g
  4. 0.0025 g
Show answer

Answer: B, 2,500 g. 1 kg = 1,000 g, so 2.5 × 1,000 = 2,500. Going from a larger unit to a smaller one, the number gets bigger.

15. A medicine is dosed at 5 mg per kilogram of body weight. A child weighs 44 lb. Using 1 kg = 2.2 lb, what is the dose?

  1. 100 mg
  2. 220 mg
  3. 484 mg
  4. 44 mg
Show answer

Answer: A, 100 mg. Pounds to kilograms: 44 ÷ 2.2 = 20 kg. Dose: 20 × 5 = 100 mg. Skipping the conversion (44 × 5) gives 220 mg; multiplying by 2.2 instead of dividing gives 484 mg.

16. A cut is 3 inches long. Using 1 inch = 2.54 cm, how long is it in centimeters?

  1. 7.62 cm
  2. 1.18 cm
  3. 5.54 cm
  4. 76.2 cm
Show answer

Answer: A, 7.62 cm. 3 × 2.54 = 7.62. A centimeter is smaller than an inch, so the number of centimeters must be larger than 3. Dividing (3 ÷ 2.54) gives 1.18, which fails that check.

17. A room is 12 feet by 9 feet. How many square yards of carpet cover the floor?

  1. 12
  2. 36
  3. 108
  4. 7
Show answer

Answer: A, 12 square yards. Area = 12 × 9 = 108 square feet. One square yard is 3 ft × 3 ft = 9 square feet, so 108 ÷ 9 = 12. Dividing by 3 gives 36, the common slip with square units. Another way: 4 yd × 3 yd = 12.

18. A circle has a diameter of 10 cm. Using π = 3.14, what is its circumference?

  1. 31.4 cm
  2. 78.5 cm
  3. 314 cm
  4. 15.7 cm
Show answer

Answer: A, 31.4 cm. Circumference = π × diameter = 3.14 × 10 = 31.4. Option B, 78.5, is the area (π × 5²), and option D uses the radius in place of the diameter.

19. A box measures 4 cm by 5 cm by 10 cm. How many milliliters of liquid does it hold when full?

  1. 200 mL
  2. 19 mL
  3. 2,000 mL
  4. 20 mL
Show answer

Answer: A, 200 mL. Volume = 4 × 5 × 10 = 200 cubic centimeters, and 1 cubic centimeter equals 1 mL. Adding the sides (4 + 5 + 10) gives 19.

20. What is the median of 3, 9, 4, 12, 4, 10?

  1. 4
  2. 6.5
  3. 7
  4. 8
Show answer

Answer: B, 6.5. Sort first: 3, 4, 4, 9, 10, 12. With six numbers the median is the mean of the middle two: (4 + 9) ÷ 2 = 6.5. The mean is 7 (42 ÷ 6) and the mode is 4. Taking the middle two without sorting (4 and 12) gives 8.

Questions 21 and 22 use this table.

DaySteps walked
Monday6,200
Tuesday8,450
Wednesday5,900
Thursday9,100
Friday7,350

21. What is the range of the steps walked?

  1. 3,200
  2. 2,250
  3. 7,400
  4. 9,100
Show answer

Answer: A, 3,200. Range = highest − lowest = 9,100 − 5,900 = 3,200. Option B, 2,250, is Tuesday minus Monday, not highest minus lowest.

22. What is the mean number of steps per day?

  1. 7,400
  2. 7,350
  3. 37,000
  4. 3,200
Show answer

Answer: A, 7,400. Total: 6,200 + 8,450 + 5,900 + 9,100 + 7,350 = 37,000. Mean = 37,000 ÷ 5 = 7,400. Option B, 7,350, is the median, and option C is the total before dividing.

23. A student logs study hours and practice scores: 1 hour, 52%; 2 hours, 58%; 3 hours, 63%; 4 hours, 70%. Which statement describes the data?

  1. As hours go up, scores go up: a positive relationship.
  2. As hours go up, scores go down: a negative relationship.
  3. Hours and scores show no relationship.
  4. Scores cause the study hours.
Show answer

Answer: A. Each extra hour comes with a higher score, so the two variables rise together, which is a positive relationship. The data shows that they move together; it does not show which causes which, so D goes beyond it.

24. A patient's temperature is 38 °C. Using °F = (9/5 × °C) + 32, what is it in Fahrenheit?

  1. 68.4 °F
  2. 100.4 °F
  3. 102.2 °F
  4. 96.8 °F
Show answer

Answer: B, 100.4 °F. 9/5 × 38 = 342 ÷ 5 = 68.4. Add 32: 100.4. Forgetting to add 32 gives 68.4. Options C and D are 39 °C and 36 °C.

Score yourself

Count your correct answers and divide by 24. Then count them by area: out of 13 for numbers and algebra and out of 11 for measurement and data. A short set like this one swings a lot, since each question is worth about 4 points, so use it to find which area is weaker, not to predict a TEAS score. On the real test only 34 of the 38 math questions count, and each question is right or wrong with no partial credit and no penalty for guessing (ATI question types). Never leave a question blank.

Compare the result with your program's math minimum, if it has one. Most programs set only an overall minimum, but some set one for math: Northern Virginia Community College's nursing program asks for 65% in math and Washtenaw Community College for 60%. See what score you need for all 56 programs we checked.

Question types you will see in math

Most TEAS questions are standard multiple choice with four options and one right answer, like the ones above. About 20% are other types (ATI question types). For math the one to practice is fill in the blank: you type the answer with no options to choose from and must follow the format the question asks for. Try questions 5, 12 and 15 again without looking at the options. The other types are multiple select (choose every correct option from five or six), ordered response (drag four to six options into order) and hot spot (click an area of an image). Every type is scored all or nothing.

How to fix what you missed

Then take our free practice test, which scores math alongside the other three sections against your program's minimum, so you can see whether math is where your points are. The four-week study plan shows how to split time between sections, and the TEAS 7 format covers every section's questions and minutes.

Sources

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