In this activity, we will use two-part ratios in money sharing problems.
Example 1
A sum of money is shared in the ratio 2:3 between two people, A and B.
If A gets £54, how much does B get?
Answer
A will have 2 bags of money and B will have 3 bags. Each bag holds an equal amount of money.
We need to work out how much money there is in each bag.
2 bags contain £54.
We need to work out how much is in 1 bag.
Sum of money in 1 bag = £54 ÷ 2 = £27
B gets 3 bags of money, so that is: 3 × £27 = £81.
Example 2
A sum of money is shared in the ratio 3:5 between two people, A and B.
If A gets £54, how much was shared in total?
Answer
A will have 3 bags of money and B will have 5 bags. Each bag holds an equal amount of money.
We need to work out how much money there is in 1 bag.
3 bags contain £54.
Sum of money in 1 bag = £54 ÷ 3 = £18
In total, there are 3 + 5 = 8 bags of money, so that is: 8 × £18 = £144.
Let's move on to some questions now.