Nerdle #559 Answer
Tuesday, August 1, 2023
87−9*9=6
- Structure
- AB-C*D=E
- Type
- Mixed Subtraction and Multiplication
- Result
- 6
How the clues would have read
- Today's equation begins with a two-digit number in the 80s.
- This puzzle uses multiplication and subtraction operations.
- The result is a single-digit even number.
The numbers behind it
- Divisibility: 87 is divisible by 3 and 29, 9 is divisible by 3, 9 is divisible by 3, and 6 is divisible by 2 and 3
- Digital roots: 87 → 8+7 = 15 → 6, 9 → 9, 9 → 9, 6 → 6
- Prime factorization: 87 = 3×29, 9 = 3², 9 = 3², 6 = 2×3
Why the structure matters
This puzzle's shape is AB-C*D=E — a mixed subtraction and multiplication, where each letter stands for one digit. Recognising the shape before the arithmetic is what separates a three-guess solve from a six-guess struggle: once you know the equation is a mixed subtraction and multiplication, most of the search space is gone before you have spent a single guess.
The result, 6, factors as 2×3 — those factors are exactly the operations that could have produced it.
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