The Waiter

Three men in a cafe order a meal the total cost of which is $15. They each contribute $5. The waiter takes the money to the chef who recognises the three as friends and asks the waiter to return $5 to the men.

The waiter is not only poor at mathematics but dishonest and instead of going to the trouble of splitting the $5 between the three he simply gives them $1 each and pockets the remaining $2 for himself.

Now, each of the men effectively paid $4, the total paid is therefore $12. Add the $2 in the waiters pocket and this comes to $14. Where has the other $1 gone from the original $15?




Similar Riddles

In the addition below, all digits have been replaced by letters. Equal letters represent equal digits and different letters represent different digits.
ABCABA
BBDCAA
ABEABB
ABDBAA
------- +
AAFGBDH
What does the complete addition look like in digits?

Asked by Neha on 04 Jul 2023


John went to meet his friend Jacob, but when he was about to reach the main gate, John notices that Jacob had a mighty dog who was fastened to the tree. The chain is long enough that it allows the dog to reach the main gate.

How can the John reach the main gate?

Dog and Visitor Riddle

Asked by Neha on 06 Apr 2021

A father's child, a mother's child, yet no one's son.

Who am I?

Asked by Neha on 21 Mar 2022


Christina, Allison and Lena are 3 daughters of John a well-known Mathematician, When I asked John the age of their daughters. He replied "The current age of her daughters is prime. Also, the difference between their ages is also prime."

How old are the daughters?

Asked by Neha on 05 Aug 2023

Eight of us go fourth, not back, to protect our king from an attack. What are we?

Asked by Neha on 17 Apr 2022

A man has to get a fox, a chicken, and a sack of corn across a river.

He has a rowboat, and it can only carry him and one other thing.
If the fox and the chicken are left together, the fox will eat the chicken.
If the chicken and the corn are left together, the chicken will eat the corn.

How does the man do it?

Asked by Neha on 04 May 2021


It comprises roots which nobody sees,
Much taller than those trees,
Up and up it goes,
Still it never grows?

Asked by Neha on 02 Jan 2025

There was a competition where the contestants had to hold something. At the end of the event, the winner was a person who had no hands or feet. What was it that the contestants had to hold?

Asked by Neha on 20 Jun 2025

Find the combined weight of the Cat, Dog and Rabbit in the given picture.

 Weight of Animals

Asked by Neha on 17 Jan 2024


What is the coolest letter in the alphabet?

Asked by Neha on 24 Oct 2021

Hot Articles

Amazing Facts

No Solution

In 2007, a puzzle was released and $2 million prizes were offered for the first complete solution. The competition ended at noon on 31 December 2010, with no solution being found. Wiki