What is the resolution to the 'missing dollar' puzzle?

• A. The manager kept the dollar.
• B. There is a missing dollar due to accounting error.
• C. There isn't a missing dollar; there was an error in calculating the total.
• D. The customer was overcharged.

Answer: (C)

This question tests how people keep track of money when it’s split among different recipients. Start with the full amount: $30. After the hotel refunds $5 to the guests, $25 remains with the hotel. Of that $25, $2 goes to the bellboy as a tip and the remaining $23 stays with the hotel. The $5 refunded to the guests is part of the original $30, not an addition to the hotel’s $25. If you try to add the bellboy’s $2 to the $23, you’re mixing two parts of the same $25, which creates the illusion of a missing dollar. The correct way to see the totals is either: hotel $25 plus refund $5 equals $30, or hotel $23 plus bellboy $2 plus refund $5 equals $30. There isn’t a missing dollar; the confusion comes from incorrect summing.