If five gnomes can dig five holes in five hours, how many hours does it take one gnome to dig one hole?
5
One gnome takes 5 hours to dig a single hole, just as five gnomes working independently take 5 hours to dig their respective holes.
About this riddle
Math riddles hide a calculation inside a short story. Pull out the numbers, work out what is being asked, and watch for a trick such as a unit change.
Difficulty: Easy. More like this: Math riddles with answers or try Target 24 for a different kind of puzzle.
More math riddles
I am an odd number. Take away a single letter from my name, and I become even. Which number am I?
A rectangular swimming pool measuring 10 meters by 6 meters is encircled by a concrete walkway of uniform width 2 meters. What is the area of the walkway alone in square meters?
I am a two-digit number. My tens digit is twice my units digit, and the sum of my digits is 9. What number am I?
I am an odd number containing multiple digits. Take away my first digit, and I become an even number. What kind of number was I originally?
I am a four-digit number. My thousands digit is 3, and my units digit is 8. The middle two digits are equal to each other, and the sum of all my digits is 20. What number am I?
A mother is currently three times older than her daughter was two years ago. In twelve years, the mother will be exactly twice the age her daughter will be then. How old is the mother today?

