11 Easiest Math Problems That Look Hard

Published on February 12, 2018 at 9:34 am by Insider Monkey Staff in Lists

If you are interested in learning about the easiest math problems that look hard, then you have come to the right place.

Many people consider mathematics to be tough, and if you are one of them, then we kind of have to agree with you as well. Most mathematical problems look hard and are indeed hard to solve. You have to have a good understanding of related formulas and equations and also need keen observation skills as well. Now that said, mathematics can be really fun as well. Just take a look at the 25 Funniest Math Jokes, Riddles and Pick up Lines Ever. The human civilization owes a lot to the mathematics as well as the science fields. If the hard math word problems are solved, our technology and knowledge base will reach new heights. If just the hardest algebra problems are solved, we will experience the hardest algebra problem development in related science and technology.

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There are plenty of hard math equations still unsolved. If you want you can look them up and try to solve them yourself, however, it should be said that there are countless mathematicians out there who have been working on these equations for ages. But, let’s just not go off on a tangent here. We are here to discuss simple math problems with answers, but of course with a twist. The math problems we are going to talk about here appear rather tough but are in fact quite simple to solve. The math problems are designed in a clever way so that to an unwary observer these problems appear to be rather complex. However, if you take the time to take a good look at it, you will be able to see through it. Before we get to the list, we would like to recommend another math related article for you, the 10 Math Problem Solving Activities for Middle School, if you are interested in math, you will love it as well.

To find out the easy math problems that appear rather difficult, we took to the internet. Thankfully, there are quite a lot of websites and online forums out there that are dedicated to mathematics and related topics. People are fascinated by mathematics all over the world; we would especially like to thank the following websites for their contribution to our research: Quora, Math and Multimedia, Math Warehouse, and Education. Of course, we also put Google’s trusty search engine through its paces for any additional information we needed on the subject as well. In this list, you will find the math related problems that we think are deceptively easy. The deceptive part is that they look much harder than they actually are to solve. These math problems can be a fun brain teaser and can also help people grow interest in mathematics.

Without further ado, let’s get started with our list of easiest math problems that look hard.

11. The Bat & The Ball

Let’s start with the problem — a bat and ball cost one dollar and ten cents combined. Now if the bat costs a full dollar more than the ball, what is the cost of the ball? Don’t hasten to answer that the price of the ball is 10 cents. Which most people will say initially. However, that is not the correct answer. The problem is designed as such that when you listen to it the first time, your brain instantly prompts you to say the ball costs 10 cents. However, in reality, the cost of the ball is 5 cents, and the price of the bat is $1 and 5 cents. That conforms to the condition of the problem.

10. Missing Mangoes

We are continuing our list of easiest math problems that look hard with a problem that is quite exciting if you are a fruit lover. As you can tell from the title, it involves mangoes. The problem goes like this — one night an eager King couldn’t rest. He went down to the kitchen, where he found a box full of mangoes. To fulfill his craving, he took 1/6 of the mangoes. Later that same night, the Queen woke up and found a same container of mangoes. She took 1/5 of what the King had left and retired to bed. Still later, the Prince woke up, went to the kitchen, and ate one-fourth of the rest of the mangoes. His brother also went to the kitchen and ate 1/3 of what remained. At last, the princess ate 1/2 of the remaining mangoes, leaving just three mangoes in the container. How many mangoes were there, to begin with? The problem can be easily solved if you start working backward from the three remaining mangoes. If you start adding up as the fractions suggest, you will end up with 18 mangoes, which is the correct answer.

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9. The Missing Dollar

This is a really interesting math problem on our list of easiest math problems that look hard. The question goes like this: “I saw a shirt for $97, I borrowed $50 from dad and $50 from mom. I bought the shirt for $97 with $3 change in hand $100-$97 = $3. Now I gave $1 to dad and $1 to mom and kept $1 to myself. Now I owe my dad $49 my mom $49, and I have $1($49+$49+$1 = $99). But where did $1 go, as I had $100, to begin with? This is really a fun math problem to solve. It is not about adding up the numbers rather the observation, get it?

8. Cheryl’s Birthday

“Albert and Bernard just become friends with Cheryl, and they want to know when her birthday is. Cheryl gives them a list of 10 possible dates: May 15, May 16, May 19, June 17, June 18, July 14, July 16, August 14, August 15 and August 17.

Cheryl then tells Albert and Bernard separately the month and the day of her birthday respectively.

Albert: I don’t know when Cheryl’s birthday is, but I know that Bernard doesn’t know too.
Bernard: At first I don’t know when Cheryl’s birthday is, but I know now.
Albert: Then I also know when Cheryl’s birthday is.
So when is Cheryl’s birthday?”

It looks rather daunting, but the solution is rather simple keeping with the theme of this article. Just check out the video for the solution.

7. Is the Equitation 0.999….= 1 True or False

Since we have put “….” at the end of the equation it means the equation goes on infinitely. Which means, 0.999…. can never equal one right? Well, if you think that the given equation is false then think again. Because the equation is in fact true. It is just another way of writing the number 1. When we write numbers in decimal, there are more ways than one to write a number. Just imagine this equation “1 – 0.999…..” the answer to this question will be 0.000….. There is nothing at the end of an infinite string of zeros. It is just a 0.

6. The Fancy Foreign Math

This problem ranks 6th on our list of easiest math problems that look hard. It is very interesting as the difficulty comes not from the math itself, but rather from the unusual assumption with which you have to solve the problem. The problem goes “In a foreign country, half of 5 = 3. Based on that same proportion, what’s one-third of 10? It seems quite difficult at first, but if you can cope with your brain telling you that half of 5 is always 2.5, then you can solve this problem quite easily.

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5. How to Make a 1,000 with Eights

We are halfway through our list of easiest math problems that look hard. At number 5 we have a rather interesting one. Well, the problem goes like this “How can you add eight 8’s to get the number 1,000? (only use addition)”. It seems a tough right rather? Well, the answer is quite simple 888 + 88 + 8 + 8 + 8 = 1,000.

4. The Lily Pad Problem

Waterlily is a beautiful flower. However, we are more interested in lily pads for now. The problem goes “There is a patch of lily pads on a lake. “Every day, the patch doubles in size. If it takes 48 days for the patch to cover the entire lake, how long would it take for the patch to cover half of the lake?” If you are reaching for your calculator and notebook, then you are doing it kind of wrong. You will reach the right answer this way, but the problem is certainly not as difficult as it looks. The answer is 47 days, since the patch grows double each day, the answer has to be 47 days.

Pixabay/ Public Domain

And now, let’s see the top three easiest math problems that look hard, shall we?

3. The Merchant’s Shipment

At first glance, you are bound to get a bit startled. However, the problem is rather simple to solve. The problem goes “A merchant can place eight large boxes or 10 small boxes into a carton for shipping. In one shipment, he sent a total of 96 boxes. If there are more large boxes than small boxes, how many cartons did he ship?” You will need help from pen and paper to solve this, but it is quite easy. The answer is 11 cartons. This is how and why, 11 cartons total 7 large boxes (7 X 8 = 56 boxes) 4 small boxes (4 X 10 = 40 boxes) 11 total cartons and 96 boxes.

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2. Two Fathers and Two Sons

This particular problem has the appearance of a math problem, but in fact, it is more along the lines of a logic puzzle. The problem is — “Two fathers and two sons sat down to have eggs for breakfast. The thing is there ate precisely three eggs, despite this fact every individual had a whole egg.” How could this happen, this is for you to solve. The answer is pretty simple, one of the fathers was also a grandfather.

Pixabay/Public Domain

Are you ready for the number one on our list of easiest math problems that look hard?

1. The Jumping Grasshopper

Assume that a grasshopper can jump forever. Every time it jumps, it gets a bit tired, and every jump covers half the distance of its prior jump. If it jumps half a foot on the first jump and then 1/4 of a foot on the next and so on, how many jumps would it take for the grasshopper to cross 1 foot of distance? It looks like a problem involving linear sequence, so you pull out your calculator and your math notebook to solve it. However, the answer is pretty simple; it will never get to the 1-foot mark because due to the nature of the problem, we will need to keep adding smaller and smaller amounts.