what is a 40% mark up on an item that

costs-$38.00?

Is $38.00 the cost to the merchant or is it what she charges the customers?

it is the cost of the item.

Whose cost?

If the merchant paid $38.00, then with a 40% markup, she'd charge the customer $53.20

1.4 * 38 = 53.2

To calculate a 40% markup on an item that costs $38.00, you first need to understand what a markup is. A markup is the amount added to the cost price of an item to determine its selling price. In this case, the markup is 40% of the cost price.

To determine the markup, you can follow these steps:

Step 1: Calculate the markup amount.
Markup = 40% of the cost price
Markup = 0.40 * $38.00

Step 2: Add the markup amount to the cost price to determine the selling price.
Selling price = Cost price + Markup
Selling price = $38.00 + Markup

Now, let's calculate the markup amount:

Markup = 0.40 * $38.00
Markup = $15.20

So, the markup amount is $15.20. Now, we can determine the selling price:

Selling price = $38.00 + $15.20
Selling price = $53.20

Therefore, a 40% markup on an item that costs $38.00 would result in a selling price of $53.20.