Logic and number words

Swap every letter for the number it stands for

HintThe values are given at the start — trade the symbols in first.

The whyOnce A = 2 and B = 5 become plain numbers, the sum is ordinary arithmetic. Copy carefully — a mis-copied value wrecks a correct method.

No — work strictly left to right, in the order written

HintSchool habits mislead you here — take the sum exactly as it comes.

The whyIn class, multiplying would come before adding; in these puzzles each step is applied as you meet it. Here 2 + 3 × 4 means 5 × 4 = 20, not 14.

Follow the sentence step by step from the given number

HintTreat it like a recipe — one instruction at a time, in order.

The whyWrite the running total down after every instruction; holding it in your head is where slips happen.

2 and 3

HintTwins for the first word; triplets for the second.

The why"Treble" appears far less often than "double" in everyday talk, which is exactly why papers use it. These little words carry the whole instruction.

Divide it by two

HintShare it into a pair of equal parts and keep one.

The whyHalving 18 gives 9. Watch for chains: "double it, then halve it" lands you back where you began.

Take the smaller away from the larger

HintIt measures the gap, so the answer is never negative.

The whyThe difference between 4 and 9 is 5. It is a subtraction in disguise — but always the small one from the big one.

The same relation links them in every worked example

HintTwo finished sets show the trick — find what both have in common, then reuse it.

The whyTry the simple relations first: add the outside pair, find their difference, or multiply them — perhaps then halving or doubling. Whatever fits BOTH examples is the rule to apply to the third.

The full order of everyone involved

HintPlacing just two people is not enough — the statements pin down the whole line-up.

The whyThe right order is the only one that fits every statement at once. If two different orders both fit, re-read — you have missed a clue.

Rule out the impossible until one arrangement is left

HintWork like a detective — cross off whatever the clues forbid.

The whyCheck every possibility against every clue rather than leaping at the first fit. The answer is the arrangement nothing forbids.

Add them together

HintPlus, in disguise.

The whyThe sum of 7 and 5 is 12. Do not confuse it with the product, which multiplies them instead.