Question

Mike goes to play at 3:00 p.m. and comes back home 40 minutes later. What would the angle between the hour hand and the minute hand of the clock be once he's back home?
Ignore the angle moved by the hour hand.

• A. 45°
• B. 150°
• C. 90°
• D. 180°

Answer 1

The correct option is B 150°

40 minutes past 3:00 p.m. would be 3:40 p.m.

The total angle of a circle is 360°.

Total number of hour divisions in a clock = 12

Thus, the angle between any two consecutive numbers on the clock would be:

$\frac{360°}{12}$ = 30°

At 3:40, the hour hand is at 3, and the minute hand is at 8.

Thus, the number of divisions between 3 and 8 = 5

Hence, the angle between the hour hand and the minute hands = 5 × 30° = 150°