This classic riddle asks:
“If two’s company and three’s a crowd, what are four and five?”
At first, it sounds like the question is continuing the familiar saying “two’s company, three’s a crowd.” That can make you search for another clever phrase describing four or five people.
But the trick is much simpler.
Instead of treating four and five as groups of people, treat them as ordinary numbers. The question literally asks what four and five are when you put them together mathematically.
4 + 5 = 9
So the answer is:
Nine.
The opening phrase is only there to distract you and make the question sound more complicated than it really is. Once you ignore the saying and focus on the numbers, the solution becomes obvious.
Answer: 9.
Did you spot the simple trick immediately, or did the “company and crowd” wording send you in the wrong direction?
