Percentage questions become less confusing when you identify the base before calculating. The base is the quantity treated as 100 percent. If that quantity changes halfway through a problem, repeating the original calculation can produce the wrong answer.
The official English GAT preparation guide is a reference for the test’s quantitative and verbal preparation. The questions below are original practice exercises designed to explain percentage reasoning.
Question 1: A discount followed by an increase
A book costs 200 riyals. Its price falls by 20 percent and then rises by 20 percent. What is the final price?
Answer: 192 riyals. The discount is 40, so the new price is 160. The later increase is 20 percent of 160, which is 32. Adding 32 produces 192.
The final price is not 200 because the two percentage changes use different bases. An equal percentage decrease and increase do not automatically cancel. You can also write the calculation as 200 × 0.80 × 1.20.
Question 2: Recover the original price
After a 25 percent discount, an item costs 90 riyals. What was its original price?
Answer: 120 riyals. The remaining 90 represents 75 percent of the original price. Divide 90 by 0.75 to obtain 120.
Adding 25 percent of 90 gives 112.50, which does not reverse the discount. To check your answer, calculate 25 percent of 120 and subtract it. The result returns to 90.
Question 3: Percentage points or percent change?
A learner’s practice accuracy rises from 60 percent to 75 percent. What is the increase in percentage points, and what is the relative percent increase?
Answer: 15 percentage points and 25 percent relative growth. The point difference is 75 − 60. The relative change is 15 ÷ 60 = 0.25.
Read the requested measure before choosing an answer. Both numbers describe the same movement, but they answer different questions.
Use a repeatable checking method
For a fresh set of Qiyas GAT quantitative practice questions, write the base beside each percentage. Then estimate the direction of the result. A discounted price must be lower; an original price recovered from a discounted price must be higher.
Keep the multiplier method and the reverse-percentage method in a short note beside the Qiyas GAT formula cheat sheet. A formula becomes more useful when you know which quantity belongs in it.
Finally, change the numbers and solve the question again. If you can explain why the base changes, you have learned a method that transfers to a new problem rather than memorized three answers.