Algebra Math Riddles Collection

A collection of Algebra Math Riddles for fun and pleasure! Tease your brain with these riddles, then click to show or hide the answer. (Note: You may need to enable JavaScript on your browser for the answers to show properly.)

Also visit our Math Trivia page for more arithmetic riddles, geometry riddles, statistics riddles, calculus riddles etc.

Algebra Riddles

1. Why didn’t the Romans find algebra challenging? Because X was always 10.


2. How do we know that the following fractions are in Europe? A/C, X/C and W/C ? Because their numerators are all over C's.
3. What do you get when you combine Einstein and Pythagoras discoveries? E m c² = m ( a² +  b² )
4. How do you expand (a + b)²? (a            +            b)           ²
5. How would you prove that 2 = 1? If a = b (so I say)                                        [a = b]
   And we multiply both sides by a
   Then we'll see that a²                                  [a² = ab]
   When with ab compared
   Are the same. Remove b². OK?                 [a²− b² = ab − b²]
   Both sides we will factorize. See?
   Now each side contains a − b.                     [(a+b)(a − b) = b(a − b)]
   We'll divide through by a
   Minus b and olé
   a + b = b. Oh whoopee!                                [a + b = b]
   But since I said a = b
   b + b = b you'll agree?                                 [b + b = b]
   So if b = 1
   Then this sum I have done                          [1 + 1 = 1]
   Proves that 2 = 1. Q.E.D.
   Written by PeterW
   
   (Just in case you're wondering - the above proof is incorrect because in step 5, we divided by (a - b) which is 0 since a = b)


6. A man is in a tree and using a pot. What do you call the pot? (submitted by Matt) A high-pot-in-use!
7. Two fathers and two sons sat down to eat eggs for breakfast. They ate exactly three eggs, each person had an egg. How is that possible? One of the father is also a grandfather

Are these too easy? You may want to try some harder math puzzles or math riddles by Lewis Carroll

• Tangled Tale: Knot 1
• Tangled Tale: Knot 2
• Tangled Tale: Knot 3
• Tangled Tale: Knot 4