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Equation Detective Puzzle

Equation Detective – Level 1 – Easy

Other Puzzles

Three friends – Maya, Ben, and Sophie – each bought a different item (smoothie, sandwich, or fruit pot) on a different day (Tuesday, Thursday, or Friday). The prices of the items are all different, and your job is to work out who bought what, on which day, and how much they spent.

Read more about how to solve these puzzles here

Clues:

  1. The sandwich cost x pounds.
  2. The fruit pot cost x – 1, and the smoothie cost x + 2.
  3. Sophie bought her item on Thursday.
  4. Ben did not buy the smoothie or the sandwich.
  5. The person who bought the smoothie paid £6.
  6. Maya bought her item on Friday and paid £6.

Your Workings For Equation Detective

Enter your working out in this box, including your suggested solution.
Your Answers:
Name Food Day Price
Sophie
Ben
Maya

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Additional instructions for Equation Detective (Level 1, Easy)

Equation Detective – Easy

Think “grid first, algebra second”. Easy puzzles usually give you at least one definite placement and at least one simple price relationship.

Quick workflow:

  • Fill any clue that is direct (“X bought Y”, “Z was on Monday”, “A cost £4”).
  • For price clues, rewrite them as mini equations: cookie = juice + 2, wrap = salad + 1, juice = 2 × wrap.
  • If you know one value, immediately compute the related ones and place them (then eliminate the rest).

Tip: keep a tiny “price ladder” list on the side so you don’t lose track of which values you’ve already deduced.

Full help: Equation Detective

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