What is a cryptarithm?

A puzzle where letters stand for digits in a sum

What is a key rule of cryptarithms?

Each letter stands for one unique digit

Why must M equal 1 in SEND plus MORE equals MONEY?

Two four-digit numbers can carry at most 1 into the fifth digit

What is a doubly true alphametic?

One where the words also form a true statement

Cryptarithm Quiz: SEND Plus MORE Equals MONEY and Letter Sums

A century-old puzzle hides a sum inside words, and this cryptarithm quiz teaches you to crack it. Play 10 interactive questions on Henry Dudeney's 1924 puzzle, the rules for letters and digits, leading zeros, why M must be 1, carrying, the solution 9567 plus 1085, the word alphametic, J. A. H. Hunter, doubly true puzzles and computer solving.

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🎯 Daily Trivia Challenge • 🧠 10 Questions • ⏱️ 150 Seconds

Question 1 / 10 Time: 150s

Define
What is a cryptarithm?
Famous
Which classic cryptarithm was published in 1924?
Creator
Who published SEND plus MORE equals MONEY?
Rule
What is a key rule of cryptarithms?
Lead
What restriction applies to leading letters?
M
Why must M equal 1 in SEND plus MORE equals MONEY?
Answer
What is SEND in the solution?
Money
What does MONEY equal in the solution?
Term
Who coined the word alphametic in 1955?
Double
What is a doubly true alphametic?

Explanations: answer key for all 10 questions

Q1: What is a cryptarithm?
Answer: A puzzle where letters stand for digits in a sum
It is also called an alphametic.
Q2: Which classic cryptarithm was published in 1924?
Answer: SEND plus MORE equals MONEY
It appeared in the Strand Magazine.
Q3: Who published SEND plus MORE equals MONEY?
Answer: Henry Dudeney
He was a famous puzzle maker.
Q4: What is a key rule of cryptarithms?
Answer: Each letter stands for one unique digit
Same letter, same digit.
Q5: What restriction applies to leading letters?
Answer: They cannot be zero
Numbers do not start with zero.
Q6: Why must M equal 1 in SEND plus MORE equals MONEY?
Answer: Two four-digit numbers can carry at most 1 into the fifth digit
The sum of two four-digit numbers is under 20,000.
Q7: What is SEND in the solution?
Answer: 9567
MORE is 1085.
Q8: What does MONEY equal in the solution?
Answer: 10652
Check: 9567 plus 1085.
Q9: Who coined the word alphametic in 1955?
Answer: J. A. H. Hunter
It describes puzzles using real words.
Q10: What is a doubly true alphametic?
Answer: One where the words also form a true statement
For example, number words that add correctly.

Cryptarithm Quiz – SEND Plus MORE Equals MONEY and Letter Sums

A cryptarithm, or alphametic, is a puzzle where letters stand for digits in an arithmetic problem. Each letter represents one unique digit, and leading letters cannot be zero.

The most famous is SEND plus MORE equals MONEY, published by Henry Dudeney in the Strand Magazine in 1924. Since two four-digit numbers can carry at most 1, M must be 1, and careful reasoning about carries leads to 9567 plus 1085 equals 10652.

J. A. H. Hunter coined the word alphametic in 1955 for puzzles using real words. Doubly true alphametics use number words that add correctly, and computers can solve cryptarithms by checking digit combinations.

What This Quiz Teaches

Puzzle and math fans will enjoy these questions.

What cryptarithms are
Which puzzle is most famous
Which rules apply
How to reason through carries
How the field developed

Did You Know?

Good puzzles have exactly one solution.
Multiplication cryptarithms also exist.
Some puzzles use other languages.
Starting from the leftmost column often helps.
Writing out carries makes solving easier.