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Not sure if I posted this one before, figure there's enough new blood here to entertain the majority:

Three men each paid $10 to share a $30 hotel room. Later, the manager felt bad about overcharging them for a $25 dollar room, so he gave the bellboy 5 one-dollar bills to return to them. The bellboy returned one dollar to each of the men, but kept two for himself. So the men paid $27 for the room, plus $2 to the bellboy for a total of $29. Where did the extra dollar go?

The manager kept it? He counts as a man.

A delicious burger off the dollar menu of the McDonald's next door.

There is no extra dollar, this problem is old and overused XD They paid 30 dollars, 5 dollars were returned, and 3 went to the men and 2 went to the bellboy.

Well time for my serious answer.  One of the men kept a dollar while they tipped the bellboy 2 of their dollars he gave them back when he already had kept 2.  So the bellboy has four of the dollars because he lied to the men and told them the room was 27 dollars instead of 25 so he could keep the extra money.  So that one dollar is with one of the men.

Done.  I think.

The $2 was taken out of the $27 when it should have been taken from the total amount of $30.

The trick is that the payment of $27 dollars comes from the $25 after return and then the $2 to bellboy (25 + 2 = 27). The question deceives you into thinking that the $27 is made from the $3 returned to them (30 - 3 = 27), and makes you want to add the $2 from the bellboy again to get the $29, making the missing dollar just a math equation not done correctly.

Quote from: Scotty on April 12, 2011, 07:41:07 PM
The bellboy returned one dollar to each of the men, but kept two for himself. So the men paid $27 for the room, plus $2 to the bellboy for a total of $29. Where did the extra dollar go?

It's 25+3, not +2...

The men paid $28, plus 2 to the bellboy. Total $30

Quote from: Lingus on April 12, 2011, 08:17:30 PM

Quote from: Scotty on April 12, 2011, 07:41:07 PM
The bellboy returned one dollar to each of the men, but kept two for himself. So the men paid $27 for the room, plus $2 to the bellboy for a total of $29. Where did the extra dollar go?

It's 25+3, not +2...

The men paid $28, plus 2 to the bellboy. Total $30

Its 27 because the bellboy took 2, and an additional 2 again which I assume is a tip.  The plus 3 isn't paid for the room since it is their money that was returned.

Quote from: raeyo on April 12, 2011, 08:22:02 PM

Quote from: Lingus on April 12, 2011, 08:17:30 PM

Quote from: Scotty on April 12, 2011, 07:41:07 PM
The bellboy returned one dollar to each of the men, but kept two for himself. So the men paid $27 for the room, plus $2 to the bellboy for a total of $29. Where did the extra dollar go?

It's 25+3, not +2...

The men paid $28, plus 2 to the bellboy. Total $30

Its 27 because the bellboy took 2, and an additional 2 again which I assume is a tip.  The plus 3 isn't paid for the room since it is their money that was returned.

Oh right. My bad...

Still the confusion is what is being added/subtracted and from whom. Anyways, I think Cactuscat explained it well enough.

An even simpler answer:

"This is sort of a trick question, but it usually takes people a surprisingly long time to get it. The trick is the word "plus". In reality, the $2 should be subtracted from (not added to) the $27 to get $25 paid for the room. There is no missing dollar."

i was just about to say that ..lol u just missed added...

What people forget is that the problem itself is worded trickily. It says that they paid $27 for the room. This isn't true, as they still paid $25 for the room in all, it's just that the bellboy kept $2 and they each got $1 back. Think about it, the manager has $25+the bellboy has $2+and the $3 returned to the men=$30. My original post failed because I was in a rush and was on my iPod.