Puzzle 5
A 'complete' word is a word in which every letter, in turn, can be replaced by another to form a new word.
For example, RUG is a complete word because:
-ug = hug
r-g = rig
ru- = run
How many of the following words are not complete words? Proper nouns and names are not allowed.
hard
port
duck
bugs
bail
mast
thin
lean
fire
read
Puzzle Copyright © Kevin Stone
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Hint
Another example, PEN is a complete word because:
-en = ten
p-n = pin
pe- = pea
Answer
Two of the words are not complete: bugs, lean.
Reasoning
The remaining 8 words can be changed as follows:
hard:
-ard = card
h-rd = herd
ha-d = hand
har- = harp
port:
-ort = fort
p-rt = part
po-t = poet
por- = pore
duck:
-uck = muck
d-ck = deck
du-k = dusk
duc- = duct
bugs:
-ugs = hugs
b-gs = bags
bu-s = buys
bug- = ---- X
bail:
-ail = hail
b-il = boil
ba-l = bawl
bai- = bait
mast:
-ast = cast
m-st = most
ma-t = malt
mas- = mask
thin:
-hin = shin
t-in = twin
th-n = than
thi- = this
lean:
-ean = mean
l-an = loan
le-n = ---- X
lea- = leaf
fire:
-ire = hire
f-re = fare
fi-e = five
fir- = firm
read:
-ead = bead
r-ad = road
re-d = reed
rea- = real
Puzzle 6
What number is …
… one half of one third of one quarter of 360?
Puzzle Copyright © Kevin Stone
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Hint
Try working backwards.
Answer
15.
Reasoning
One quarter of 360 is 90.
One third of 90 is 30.
One half of 30 is 15.
Puzzle 7
What number comes next in this sequence:
7 · 8 · 5 · 5 · 3 · 4 · 4 · ?
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Hint
The answer involves months of the year.
Answer
6.
The number of letters each month has, starting with January, therefore, August has 6 letters.
Puzzle 8
Exactly how many minutes is it before eight o'clock if …
… 40 minutes ago, it was three times as many minutes past four o'clock?
Puzzle Copyright © Kevin Stone
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Hint
How many minutes are between the times?
Answer
50 minutes.
Reasoning
If we call the number of unknown minutes T.
Between four o'clock and eight o'clock, there are 240 minutes.
There is some point between these two times, before which we have 3 lots of T, and after which we have one lot of T plus 40 minutes.
Therefore, in the 240 minutes, there are 4 lots of T plus 40 minutes.
240 = 4 x T + 40.
Therefore, T = 50 minutes.
