Can You Solve the ‘A Man Steals $100 From a Shop’ Riddle?
Man putting money into his wallet
Riddles are an amusing way to work out the brain. Mulling over perplexing puzzles or solving a difficult brain teaser can really get those mental gears spinning unlike anything else. Recently, a tricky logic riddle has gone viral on social media, challenging people's math skills. It's known as the 'A Man Steals $100 From a Shop' riddle.
And one thing's for sure: it's making people think. Can you solve the riddle? Find out below.
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"A Man Steals $100 From a Shop" Riddle
The riddle goes like this:
A man steals a $100 bill from a shop. He then uses that $100 bill to buy $70 worth of goods. The shop owner hands him back $30 in change. How much money did the shop owner lose?
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Hints for the "Man Steals $100 From a Shop" Riddle
At first glance, this riddle involving various dollar amounts would lead you to think some complex math is required to solve it. There's a clear loss of $100 upfront when the money is stolen. Yet soon after, the shop owner regains that $100 bill in exchange for merchandise.
So what exactly has the shop owner lost here? Is it the $30 in change returned to the thief? The value of the $70 merchandise, which is now gone? Perhaps it even adds up to $130, $170 or $200 in total losses if you combine the amounts? The shifting dollar figures could mislead you.
"Mislead" is the key word there.
Spoiler alert: Don't read any further if you don't want the answer to be revealed.
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Riddle Answer Reveal
The shop owner lost $100.
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Riddle Explained
Let's make this as simple as possible: The man stole a $100 bill to begin with—so that is what the shop owner had lost.
The man used that $100 to buy $70 worth of stuff, which means the shop owner had to provide $30 in change from the register to complete the transaction. So in the actual transaction, the shop owner gave back $70 in goods and $30 in cash. That adds up to the $100 that the man had given to the shop owner.
However, that was originally the shop owner's $100 to begin with, so that is the amount he had lost.
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