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Free 4th Grade Two-Step Word Problems Worksheets

If you need 4th grade two step word problems worksheets that you can print right now, this page builds them for you — 20 fresh problems, an answer key underneath, and no account to create first. Two of the problems on the sheet as it stands are “Ella saves 5 dollars a week for 5 weeks and then spends 7 dollars. How much is left?” and “Omar buys 5 packs of 4 pencils and then loses 15. How many pencils are left?” — answers 18 dollars and 5 — and a new set is one click away.

📄 4TH GRADE TWO STEP WORD PROBLEMS WORKSHEETS — A NEW SHEET EVERY TIME YOU PRESS THE BUTTON
🎲 New set of problems

‘New set of problems’ opens the generator in its own tab. There you can change the problem count and turn the answer key on or off. ‘Print or save as PDF’ opens the print dialog — choose Save as PDF in the printer list to keep the file. The sheet fits US Letter and A4, and the answer key prints on its own page.

What these worksheets cover

The reliable routine is to read it twice, say what is being asked in your own words, write the number sentence, then calculate. Skipping straight to the numbers is what produces confident wrong answers.

Key words help and mislead in roughly equal measure. 'Altogether' usually means add and sometimes does not, so the child still has to picture the situation.

These problems use two calculations per question, so the reading, not the arithmetic, is the challenge.

Answers should carry their units. A number without a unit is not an answer to a word problem, however correct the arithmetic.

Teachers usually place 4th grade two step word problems worksheets alongside the problem-solving expectations for this grade, which is where the skill sits in the majority of US state frameworks.

Sample problems from the current sheet

These six come from the sheet loaded on this page. Press the button and the numbers change, but the shape stays the same (two calculations per question).
#ProblemAnswerWhat to check
1Ella saves 5 dollars a week for 5 weeks and then spends 7 dollars. How much is left?18 dollarsWatch for: not checking whether the answer is sensible
2Omar buys 5 packs of 4 pencils and then loses 15. How many pencils are left?5Check: missing a step in a two-step problem
3Zoe buys 9 packs of 3 pencils and then loses 8. How many pencils are left?19Look at: dropping the units
4Noah saves 19 dollars a week for 3 weeks and then spends 12 dollars. How much is left?45 dollarsAsk about: answering a different question
5A shelf holds 8 books per row in 8 rows. 8 books are borrowed. How many remain?56Watch for: grabbing the numbers and guessing the operation
6A shelf holds 10 books per row in 8 rows. 4 books are borrowed. How many remain?76Check: being thrown by unfamiliar names or objects

Start with one worked example

A good first problem to do together is “Ella saves 5 dollars a week for 5 weeks and then spends 7 dollars. How much is left?”, which comes out at 18 dollars. Do “Ella saves 5 dollars a week for 5 weeks and then spends 7 dollars. How much is left?” once with the child narrating, then hand over the pencil and start the clock on the other 20 problems.

Try “Zoe buys 9 packs of 3 pencils and then loses 8. How many pencils are left?” together before letting the child start alone. The answer to “Zoe buys 9 packs of 3 pencils and then loses 8. How many pencils are left?” is 19, and talking through how it was reached takes about a minute and saves several minutes of guessing later in the sheet.

Three common mistakes and what to do about them

A 14-minute routine that works

  1. If two days in a row come out under 14 minutes with everything correct, that is the signal to move up: either numbers bigger than “Ella saves 5 dollars a week for 5 weeks and then spends 7 dollars. How much is left?” uses, or the next skill in the sequence.
  2. Write the finish time and the score at the top of every sheet. Two weeks of those two numbers tells you more about progress on two-step word problems than any single test result.
  3. Re-print the same skill rather than the same sheet. Because the numbers change, a child who memorised that “Ella saves 5 dollars a week for 5 weeks and then spends 7 dollars. How much is left?” gives 18 dollars still has to actually calculate tomorrow.
  4. Do not raise the number of problems until the accuracy is steady. Going from 20 correct-but-slow problems to more problems only multiplies the same mistake.
  5. Stop the session at the time limit even if the sheet is unfinished, and note where the child got to. A half sheet done well is better data than a whole sheet rushed.

About the answer key

Every generated sheet carries its own key on a separate printed page, which lets a child self-mark without seeing the answers while they work.

The answer key is generated with the worksheet, not written by hand, so it always matches the sheet in front of you — “Ella saves 5 dollars a week for 5 weeks and then spends 7 dollars. How much is left?” is listed as 18 dollars, “Omar buys 5 packs of 4 pencils and then loses 15. How many pencils are left?” as 5, and so on down the page.

How to print this worksheet

Printing works the same on US Letter and A4, because the layout uses relative widths rather than fixed inches. Set margins to default and scaling to 100%, and all 20 problems fit.

The sheet is laid out to fit one page on both US Letter and A4. Leave the browser scaling at 100% and turn headers and footers off, and the 20 problems land inside the margins on either paper size.

Frequently asked questions

Can I change how many problems are on the page?
Yes — the generator takes 10, 20 or 30 problems. Twenty is the default because it fits one page and suits a 14-minute drill.
Why is my child good at calculation but bad at word problems?
Because the two skills are separate. Choosing the operation is a comprehension task, and it needs its own practice — which is exactly what this sheet is for.
Will these print correctly on A4?
Yes. These 4th grade two step word problems worksheets fit both A4 and US Letter without clipping, as long as print scaling is left at 100% and browser headers and footers are switched off.
Should they draw a picture?
For anything involving groups, sharing or comparison, yes. A bar model or a simple sketch converts a reading problem into a visible arithmetic one.

Keep the finished 4th grade two step word problems worksheets in date order — the drop in time across ten sheets is the clearest progress report you will get.

More worksheets like this

→ Free 4th Grade Math Worksheets  ·  → Free Word Problems Worksheets

Free printable math worksheets from a working math academy director in Korea. Problems come from our own code, not from a published workbook. Every sheet prints on US Letter or A4 with its answer key. All worksheets · Worksheet generator · Korean site
Last updated: 2026-09-13