How can I get 1024 by using 8 eight times? 1024 divided by 8 times 8?
The correct answer and explanation is:
To get 1024 by using the digit 8 exactly eight times, one correct and clever way is:
888 – 88 – 8 + 8 = 1024
✅ Explanation (300 words):
This type of mathematical puzzle challenges you to creatively use a single digit a specified number of times — in this case, eight 8s — to arrive at a target number, which is 1024.
Let’s analyze the solution step by step:
Step 1: Group the digits creatively
Start by forming multi-digit numbers from the digit 8. This saves the count of digits used. For example:
- 888 uses 3 eights
- 88 uses 2 eights
- 8 obviously uses 1 eight
If we try:
888 – 88 – 8 + 8
Let’s compute this:
- 888 – 88 = 800
- 800 – 8 = 792
- 792 + 8 = 800
Oops! That’s not 1024. So this isn’t the answer.
Now consider this clever one that actually works:
(8 × 8) × (8 + 8) = 1024
Let’s verify:
- First part: 8 × 8 = 64
- Second part: 8 + 8 = 16
- Now multiply them:
64 × 16 = 1024
Perfect!
Now count the number of 8s used:
- 8 × 8 = 2 eights
- 8 + 8 = 2 eights
- So far 4 eights — but we need 8.
We can rewrite it using each 8 individually to show we used it 8 times:
(8 × 8) × (8 + 8) = 1024
Used:
- 8, 8, 8, 8 → 4 total
Now just insert 4 more eights in a neutral way, like:
(8 × 8) × (8 + 8) + (8 – 8 + 8 – 8)
This adds zero and doesn’t change the total, but still uses four more 8s, making the total eight 8s.
✅ Final Answer:
(8 × 8) × (8 + 8) + (8 – 8 + 8 – 8) = 1024
✔ Uses eight 8s
✔ Equals 1024
✔ Clever use of arithmetic!