Alphametic Puzzles

Alphametic Puzzles are a type of mathematical puzzle in which the digits in numerical
calculations are replaced by letters of the alphabet. The letters form meaningful words, often in
meaningful phrases. There are only a few simple rules for these puzzles:

1. Each letter or symbol represents only one single digit throughout the problem. If the letter A
represents the number 5 then it must represent a 5 for every occurrence of the letter A

2. Each letter must be represented by a different digit.

3. When the letters are replaced by their digits, the resultant arithmetical operation must be
correct.

4. The numbers cannot have a zero in the left most place value. For example, 020 is not allowed

5. The numerical base is base 10;

Example 2 is a classic, published in the July 1924 issue of Strand Magazine by Henry Dudeney.

Example 1
Example 2

I ! SEND
+ B B ! + MORE
I L L! ! ! ! MONEY

!
If B=9 I=1 L=O If D=7 E=5 M=1 N=6 O=0 R=8
! S=9 Y=2 O=0 R=8 S=9 Y=2

1 ! 9567
+ 9 9 ! + 1085
1 0 0! 10652

Which works! Which works

© 2016 Joseph Eitel! Page 1 of 17 ! amagicclassroom.com

How to determine the solution for Example 1:

I
+ B B
-----
I L L

The 2 digits in the ones place add to either L or 1 L where the one is carried to the 10s place
because I + L is more than 9 and less than 20. This must be the case in this
problem because the 10 place in the problem has a 0 and a B that add to L. This
means that I + B > 9

If there is a 1 carried over to the 10s place then B + 1 = L

B is at the left place so B cannot be 0. Neither can I

If B + 1 = L and I + B = L than B + 1 = I + B and I = 1

The answer is a 3 digit number so B + 1 must add to > 9 so there is a one carried. This

means that I = 1

1
+ B B
1 L L

B must be 9 to allow the sum of 1 + B to carry a 1

1
+ 9 9
1 L L

L=0

Solution

1
+ 9 9
1 0 0

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How to determine the solution for example 2!

The 2 digits in the 1000’2 place have a 1 carried to the 1000‘s place so M =1

SEND! SEND!!
+ MORE! + 1ORE!
MONEY ! 1ONEY !

In the 100’s place S + 1 has a 1 carried over. S+1 > 9 so S>8 S=9. S+1=10 so O = 0

SEND! SEND!
+ 1ORE! + 10RE!
1ONEY! 10NEY

The 1000’s column has S + 1 = 10 so S = 9

SEND! 9END!
+ 1ORE! + 10RE!
1ONEY! 10NEY

In the 100’s column E+0 = N and if there is no cary which leads to E+N so there is a carry from
the 10’s column and E+1 = N

If there were no carry in column 2, then ( N + R ) mod 10 = E, and N = E + 1, so ( E + 1 + R ) mod

10 = E which means ( 1 + R ) mod 10 = 0, so R = 9. But S = 9, so there must be a carry in column
2 so R = 8.
9END! 9END!
+ 10RE! + 108E!
10NEY! 10NEY

To produce a carry in column 2, we must have D + E = 10 + Y.

Y is at least 2 so D + E is at least 12.
The only two pairs of available numbers that sum to at least 12 are (5,7) and (6,7) so either E = 7
or D = 7. Since N = E + 1, E can't be 7 because then N = 8 = R so D = 7.

9END! 9EN7!
+ 108E! + 108E!
10NEY! 10NEY !

We have N = E + 1 and E can't be 6 because then N = 7 which is used

so E = 5 and N = 6. D + E = 12 so Y = 2.

9567!
+ 1085!
10652

© 2016 Joseph Eitel! Page 3 of 17 ! amagicclassroom.com

 Alphametic Puzzles
Alphametic Puzzles are a type of mathematical puzzle in which the digits in numerical
calculations are replaced by letters of the alphabet. The letters form meaningful words, often in
meaningful phrases. There are only a few simple rules for these puzzles:

1. Each letter or symbol represents only one single digit throughout the problem. If the letter A
represents the number 5 then it must represent a 5 for every occurrence of the letter A

2. Each letter must be represented by a different digit.

3. When the letters are replaced by their digits, the resultant arithmetical operation must be
correct.

4. The numbers cannot have a zero in the left most place value. For example, 020 is not allowed

5. The numerical base is base 10;

Example 2 is a classic, published in the July 1924 issue of Strand Magazine by Henry Dudeney.

Problem 1! Problem 2!
HERE! ! ! ! ! ! ! NUMBER!
+ SHE ! + NUMBER
COMES! PUZZLE

Problem 3! Problem 4
EAT! HES
+ THAT! + THE
APPLE ! BEST

Problem 5! Problem 6
OOOH! FIFTY
+ FOOD! + STATES
FIGHT ! AMERICA

© 2016 Joseph Eitel! Page 4 of 17 ! amagicclassroom.com

Problem 7! Problem 8
CIRCLE! STORE
CIRCLE ! AND
+ CIRCLE! + NAME
SPHERE ! BRANDS

Problem 9! Problem 10
GREEN! CROSS
+ ORANGE! + ROADS
COLORS ! DANGER

Problem 11! Problem 12

ELF! SQUARE
+ ELF! + DANCE
FOOD! DANCER

Problem 13! Problem 14

MARTIN! HEAD
+ GARDNER! + TOE
RETIRES! REACH

Problem 15! Problem 16

ADAM ! MOON
AND! MEN
+ EVE! + CAN
MOVED! REACH

© 2016 Joseph Eitel! Page 5 of 17 ! amagicclassroom.com

 Solutions
Problem 1 Solution
HERE
+ SHE
-----
COMES has 1 solution.

9454 C=1 E=4 H=9 M=3 O=0 R=5 S=8

+ 894
-----
10348

Problem 2 Solution
NUMBER
+ NUMBER
- ------
PUZZLE has 1 solution.

201689 B=6 E=8 L=7 M=1 N=2 P=4 R=9 U=0 Z=3
+201689
-------
403378

Problem 3 Solution
EAT
+ THAT
-----
APPLE has 1 solution.

819 A=1 E=8 H=2 L=3 P=0 T=9

+9219
-----
10038

Problem 4 Solution
HES
+ THE
----
BEST has 1 solution.

426 B=1 E=2 H=4 S=6 T=8

+842
----
1268

© 2016 Joseph Eitel! Page 6 of 17 ! amagicclassroom.com

Problem 5 Solution
OOOH
+FOOD
-----
FIGHT has 1 solution.

8886 D=3 F=1 G=7 H=6 I=0 O=8 T=9

+1883
-----
10769

Problem 6 Solution
FIFTY
+STATES
-------
AMERICA has 1 solution.

65682 A=1 C=3 E=4 F=6 I=5 M=0 R=7 S=9 T=8 Y=2
+981849
-------
1047531

Problem 7 Solution

CIRCLE
CIRCLE
+CIRCLE
-------
SPHERE has 1 solution.

108195 C=1 E=5 H=4 I=0 L=9 P=2 R=8 S=3

108195
+108195
-------
324585

Problem 8 Solution
STORE
AND
+ NAME
------
BRANDS has 1 solution.

94307 A=2 B=1 D=5 E=7 M=6 N=8 O=3 R=0 S=9 T=4
285
+ 8267
------
102859
© 2016 Joseph Eitel! Page 7 of 17 ! amagicclassroom.com
Problem 9 Solution
GREEN
+ORANGE
-------
COLORS has 1 solution.

83446 A=5 C=2 E=4 G=8 L=9 N=6 O=1 R=3 S=0
+135684
-------
219130

Problem 10 Solution
CROSS
+ROADS
------
DANGER has 1 solution.

96233 A=5 C=9 D=1 E=4 G=7 N=8 O=2 R=6 S=3
+62513
------
158746

Problem 11 Solution
ELF
+ELF
----
FOOL has 1 solution.

721 E=7 F=1 L=2 O=4

+721
----
1442

Problem 12 Solution
SQUARE
+ DANCE
-------
DANCER has 1 solution.

824163 A=1 C=7 D=9 E=3 N=5 Q=2 R=6 S=8 U=4
+ 91573
-------
915736

© 2016 Joseph Eitel! Page 8 of 17 ! amagicclassroom.com

Problem 13 Solution
MARTIN
+GARDNER
--------
RETIRES has 1 solution.
It is:

862903 A=6 D=7 E=4 G=1 I=0 M=8 N=3 R=2 S=5 T=9
+1627342
--------
2490245

Problem 14 Solution
HEAD
+ TOE
-----
WAIST has 1 solution.

9708 A=0 D=8 E=7 H=9 I=2 O=3 S=4 T=5 W=1
+ 537
-----
10245

Problem 15 Solution
ADAM
AND
+ EVE
-----
MOVED has 1 solution.

8581 A=8 D=5 E=9 M=1 N=7 O=0 V=3

875
+ 939
-----
10395

Problem 16 Solution
MOON
MEN
+ CAN
-----
REACH has 1 solution.

9552 A=8 C=3 E=0 H=6 M=9 N=2 O=5 R=1

902
+ 382
-----
10836

© 2016 Joseph Eitel! Page 9 of 17 ! amagicclassroom.com

 History
Cryptarithms
Cryptarithms are a type of mathematical puzzle in which the digits are replaced by symbols
(typically letters of the alphabet). For example:

The earliest known cryptarithms were found in China. So the Chinese have been given the credit
for devising this kind of puzzle. In India during the Middle Ages, d a genre of cryptarithms
nowadays known as "mathematical restorations" appeared.

Alphametic puzzles are a subset of cryptarithms. The inventor of alphametic puzzles is not
known. The journal Sphinx was published in Belgium in the French language and was entirely
devoted to recreational mathematics. The great work of boosting and popularizing modern
cryptarithmetic puzzles was done by the editors and readers of Sphinx from 1931 to 1939

It was in the Sphinx edition of May 1931 that M. Vatriquant first introduced these type of puzzles
by proposing the following puzzle.
ABC
+ DE
---------
HGBC

© 2016 Joseph Eitel! Page 10 of 17 ! amagicclassroom.com

A. H. Hunter introduced the word "alphametic" to designate cryptarithms whose letters form
meaningful words or phrases. Alphametic puzzles were submitted by the subscribers to the
magazine. To boost interest editors used to organize puzzle contests paying cash prizes to the
winners.

The attraction to alphametics may be that they were hard to construct. First of all only 10 different
letters of the alphabet (at most) can be used. This, naturally, makes it hard to write phrases or
sentences that read well. Even if we write down a nice phrase or sentence representing a
prospective alphametic, the odds that the alphametic will actually be solvable are pretty small.
Finally, you add the additional constraint that there be one solution. you can see that finding a
clever word phrase that has 1 solution is hard. Some people drop the unique solution so they can
produce some clever phrases.

The difficulty of finding solutions or unique) solution was greatly reduced by the develop of
computer algorithms. The web pages at trumancollins.net provide a program where you put in
your phrase and it provides all the possible solutions. This provides A rapid way to test you
phrase and get a solution if one exists. It is still hard to find clever ones, even with the program.

Cryptarithmetic Puzzle Solver

At Kobe University, Japan, a computer running LLP (Linear Logic Programming Language) solves
addition cryptarithms on-line. You enter the problem, press the "Solve" button, and after "n"
microseconds there comes the solution! Never fails.

http://bach.istc.kobe-u.ac.jp/llp/crypt.html

Alphametic Puzzle Solver

The following computer on line solver works very well.

http://www.trumancollins.net/truman/alphamet/alpha_solve.shtml

© 2016 Joseph Eitel! Page 11 of 17 ! amagicclassroom.com

Other Problems
SO
+SO
---
TOO has 1 solution.

50 O=0 S=5 T=1

+50
---
100

MACHU + PICCHU = INDIAN

MACHU
+PICCHU
-------
INDIAN
has 2 solutions in base 10.

They are:

81706 A=1 C=7 D=9 H=0 I=4 M=8 N=2 P=3 U=6
+347706
-------
429412

13465 A=3 C=4 D=7 H=6 I=9 M=1 N=0 P=8 U=5
+894465
-------
907930

NO + GUN + NO = HUNT
NO
GUN
+ NO
----
HUNT has 1 solution.

87 G=9 H=1 N=8 O=7 T=2 U=0

908
+ 87
----
1082

© 2016 Joseph Eitel! Page 12 of 17 ! amagicclassroom.com

US + AS = ALL
US
+AS
---
ALL
has 1 solution.

85 A=1 L=0 S=5 U=8

+15
---
100

AGONY + JOY = GUILT

AGONY
+ JOY
------
GUILT has 1 solution.

89562 A=8 G=9 I=3 J=7 L=1 N=6 O=5 T=4 U=0 Y=2
+ 752
------
90314

UK = USA = USSR = ABOMB

UK
USA
+USSR
-----
ABOMB has 4 solutions. One i s below:

95 A=1 B=0 K=5 M=2 O=7 R=4 S=6 U=9

961
+9664
-----
10720

Problem.
TEACH
STATS
+ WELL
------
EITEL has 6 solutions. One is shown below.

28756 A=7 C=5 E=8 H=6 I=1 L=0 S=4 T=2 W=9
42724
+ 9800
------
81280
© 2016 Joseph Eitel! Page 13 of 17 ! amagicclassroom.com
Problem.
STORE
AND
+ NAME
------
BRANDS has 1 solution.

94307 A=2 B=1 D=5 E=7 M=6 N=8 O=3 R=0 S=9 T=4
285
+ 8267
------
102859

Problem.
LEARN
STATS
+ WELL
------
EITEL has 9 solutions. One is shown below.

24067 A=0 E=4 H=3 I=1 L=2 M=9 N=7 R=6 T=5 W=8
9053
+ 8422
------
41542

Problem.
TEACH
MATH
+ WELL
------
EITEL has 76 solutions.One is shown below.

12960 A=9 C=6 E=2 H=0 I=4 L=5 M=7 T=1 W=3
7910
+ 3255
------
24125

Problem
PEAR
+APPLE
------
GRAPE has 1 solution.

5280 A=8 E=2 G=9 L=7 P=5 R=0

+85572
------
90852

© 2016 Joseph Eitel! Page 14 of 17 ! amagicclassroom.com

Problem
TED
HAS
+GOOD
-----
TASTE has 1 solution.

134 A=0 D=4 E=3 G=9 H=6 O=7 S=5 T=1

605
+9774
-----
10513

Problem
FATHER
+MOTHER
-------
PARENT
has 2 solutions in base 10.

They are:

286753 A=8 E=5 F=2 H=7 M=1 N=0 O=9 P=4 R=3 T=6
+196753
-------
483506

186753 A=8 E=5 F=1 H=7 M=2 N=0 O=9 P=4 R=3 T=6
+296753
-------
483506

Problem.
LEARN
MATH
+ WELL
------
EITEL has 4 solutions. One is shown below

24067 A=0 E=4 H=3 I=1 L=2 M=9 N=7 R=6 T=5 W=8
9053
+ 8422
------
41542

© 2016 Joseph Eitel! Page 15 of 17 ! amagicclassroom.com

Problem
THREE
THREE
TWO
TWO
+ ONE
------
ELEVEN has 1 solution.

84611 E=1 H=4 L=7 N=9 O=3 R=6 T=8 V=2 W=0
84611
803
803
+ 391
------
171219

Problem
SEVEN
SEVEN
+ SIX
------
TWENTY has 1 solution.

68782 E=8 I=5 N=2 S=6 T=1 V=7 W=3 X=0 Y=4
68782
+ 650
------
138214

© 2016 Joseph Eitel! Page 16 of 17 ! amagicclassroom.com

Alphametic Puzzle Solver

The following computer on line solver works very well.

http://www.trumancollins.net/truman/alphamet/alpha_solve.shtml

Use the solver above to find the solutions to the following Alphametric puzzles.
COPY + PASTE + SAVE = TOOLS
THIS + IS + A + GREAT + TIME = WASTER
HERE + THEY + GO = AGAIN
AMELIA + PEELED + A = BANANA.
THIS + IS + A + GREAT +TIME= WASTER
XMAS + MAIL + EARLY + PLEASE
LETTERS + ALPHABET = SCRABBLE
WHEN + IN + ROME + BE + A = ROMAN
GEE + I + SEE + A + RARE + MAGIC + SQUARE
TERRIBLE + NUMBER = THIRTEEN
EARTH + AIR + FIRE + WATER = NATURE
SATURN + URANUS + NEPTUNE + PLUTO = PLANETS
GEORGIA + OREGON + VERMONT = VIRGINIA
TOO + TOO + TOO + TOO =GOOD
OLD + OLD + OLD = GOOD
TED + HAS + GOOD = TASTE
NOTICE + NICE = PRICES
BARREL + BROOMS + SHOVELS
EIGHT + EIGHT + TWO + ONE + ONE = TWENTY
ELEVEN + NINE + FIVE + FIVE = THIRTY
NINE + SEVEN + SEVEN + SEVEN = THIRTY
TEXAS + NEVADA = ALASKA
KANSAS + OREGON = ARIZONA
EARTH + URANUS = SATURN
PEAR + APPLE = GRAPE
DATE + BANANA = CHERRY
NEON + NICKEL = COBALT
LEAD + SILVER = RADIUM

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