Tricky and hard math problems

 Here are some fun, tricky and hard to solve maths problems that will challenge your thinking ability. 

1. If 1=3

2=3

3=5

4=4

5=4

Then, 6=?

Answer: is 3, because ‘six’ has three letters

3

2. What is the number of the parking space covered by the car?

 

This tricky math problem went viral a few years back after it appeared on an entrance exam in Hong Kong… for six-year-olds. Supposedly the students had just 20 seconds to solve the problem!

Answer:

87

Believe it or not, this “math” question actually requires no math whatsoever. If you flip the image upside down, you’ll see that what you’re dealing with is a simple number sequence.

3. Replace the question mark in the above problem with the appropriate number.

 

Answer:

6

4. Which number is equivalent to 3^(4)÷3^(2)

This problem comes straight from a standardized test given in New York in 2014.

Answer:

9

5. There are 49 dogs signed up for a dog show. There are 36 more small dogs than the large dogs. How many small dogs have signed up to compete? 

This question comes directly from a second grader's math homework.

Answer:

42.5

In order to figure out how many small dogs are competing, you have to subtract 36 from 49 and then divide that answer, 13 by 2, to get 6.5 dogs, or the number of big dogs competing. But you’re not done yet! You then have to add 6.5 to 36 to get the number of small dogs competing, which is 42.5. Of course, it’s not actually possible for half a dog to compete in a dog show, but for the sake of this math problem let’s assume that it is.

6. Add 8.563 and 4.8292.

Answer:

13.3922

Adding two decimals together is easier than it looks. Don’t let the fact that 8.563 has fewer numbers than 4.8292 trip you up. All you have to do is add a 0 to the end of 8.563 and then add like you normally would.

7. I am an odd number. Take away one letter and I become even. What number am I?

Answer: Seven (take away the ‘s’ and it becomes ‘even’).

Seven

8. Using only addition, how do you add eight 8’s and get the number 1000?

Answer: 

888 + 88 + 8 + 8 + 8 = 1000

1000

9. Sally is 54 years old and her mother is 80, how many years ago was Sally’s mother times her age?

Answer: 

41 years ago, when Sally was 13 and her mother was 39.

41 years ago

10. Which 3 numbers have the same answer whether they’re added or multiplied together?

Answer:

1, 2 and 3

11. There is a basket containing 5 apples, how do you divide the apples among 5 children so that each child has 1 apple while 1 apple remains in the basket?

Answer:

4 children get 1 apple each while the fifth child gets the basket with the remaining apple still in it.

12. There is a three digit number. The second digit is four times as big as the third digit, while the first digit is three less than the second digit. What is the number?

Answer:

141

13. Fill in the question mark

        

Answer:

25

14. Two girls were born to the same mother, at the same time, on the same day, in the same month and in the same year and yet somehow they’re not twins. Why not?

Answer:

Because there was a third girl, which makes them triplets!

Triplets

15. A ship anchored in a port has a ladder which hangs over the side. The length of the ladder is 200cm, the distance between each rung in 20cm and the bottom rung touches the water. The tide rises at a rate of 10cm an hour. When will the water reach the fifth rung?

Answer:

The tide raises both the water and the boat so the water will never reach the fifth rung. 

Never