Today’s quick math challenge asks you to solve 40 − 10 × 0 + 3 = ? without a calculator. It is short, but the order of operations is important.
The correct answer is 43
First calculate the multiplication: 10 × 0 = 0. The equation becomes 40 − 0 + 3. Now subtraction and addition proceed from left to right: 40 minus zero is 40, and 40 plus three is 43.
Why do some people get a different answer?
A common mistake is to subtract 10 from 40 before multiplying by zero. But standard arithmetic rules say that multiplication must be completed before addition or subtraction. Another error is thinking the zero makes the entire expression zero. It only makes 10 × 0 equal zero.
A simple rule to remember
When an equation mixes multiplication with addition or subtraction, do the multiplication first. Then finish the remaining operations. Try the same method on other short number puzzles and see if you can answer correctly on the first attempt.
