This tricky question was asked by my manager to one of our intern university students. Later we learned that the question “How many times do a clock’s hands overlap in a day?” is an interview question asked for job applicants in Google.
This riddle is not an easy one. Can you solve it?
How many times a day do a clock’s hands overlap?
At first, it might be tempting to just say “24,” but the correct answer is not 24!!!!!
Think outside the box!
Can you solve it?
Scroll down to check out the answer:
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b
c
The hands of a clock coincide 11 times every 12 hours (Since between 11 and 1, they coincide only once, i.e., at 12 o’clock).
AM
12:00,1:05,2:11,3:16,4:22,5:27,6:33,7:38,8:44,9:49,10:55
PM
12:00,1:05,2:11,3:16,4:22,5:27,6:33,7:38,8:44,9:49,10:55
The hands overlap about every 65 minutes, not every 60 minutes. The hands coincide 22 times in a day.
If you can reach the right answer, then that is great. However, it is more important to show that you are capable of thinking through problems and reaching a reasonable conclusion.
