Show-offs say 'simple' maths quiz question is easy - but thousands are stumped

23 September 2023 , 06:00

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The tricky maths question has gone viral (Image: @HumansNoContext/Twitter)

Maths is one of those subjects that people either love or hate. For some people, multiplication, subtraction and anything involving numbers come easy, while some really have to work hard to understand how it all works.

Either way, when you complete a particularly hard maths question, there's no denying you feel good about yourself. One maths quiz question has proved particularly tricky for many people, while a few 'showoffs' have deemed it really easy.

The maths problem has now gone viral, with millions of views - and many people are confused. So can you work it out? The question is a pattern, where you have to work out what the final answer is - but it's not just a straight forward sum.

Can you work it out? (@HumansNoContext/Twitter)

The problem is: 2+3 = 10, 8+4 = 96, 7+2 = 63, 6+5 = 66 and then you have to work out, 9+5 = ???. At first glance, it may look like all you have to do is add the numbers together, but of course it's not that easy.

You have to work out the correlation between the numbers, and it's not straight forward. But there is a pattern and a way to work it out. So try it out for yourself, before continuing to read to see if you were right.

Parents stumped by maths question for 10-year-olds - see if you can solve it

Many social media users struggled to work the correct answer out with various attempts being shared. One person suggested the answer must be 14, while another suggested 23, or 70. However, the answer is actually 126.

All you have to do is times the sum by the first number that appears in it. For example = 2 x (2+3) = 10, 8 x (8+4) = 96 and so on. This would give you the answer to 9 + 5 times 9, which would be 126. Another person on social media explained it as: "It is so easy. 2+3=10 8+4=96 7+2=63 6+5=66 X+Y=X*(X+Y) 9+5=9*(9+5)=126". Did you manage to work out the ? Let us know in the comment section below.

Was that too hard, or did you manage it with ease? Either way, why not try out another question, which was intended for a Year 5 maths exam, so 10 to 11-year-olds. Sounds easy, right? Well, only the most intelligent and logical people were able to answer it.

Ariane Sohrabi-Shiraz