Totle #2: make 14 from 4, 8, 11, 12 and 16
Wednesday, October 14, 2026
Use all five numbers with + − × ÷ to make 14. Combine two at a time; every result has to be a positive whole number.
A Wednesday puzzle, so level 4 of 7 (they get harder from Sunday to Saturday). There were 21 different answers. Harder than 75% of all Totle puzzles, and these five numbers can make 884 different totals.
About this puzzle
A Wednesday puzzle, right in the middle of the week's difficulty. Every one of its twenty-one answers needs a division somewhere, and that's the clue that unlocks it.
Four of the five numbers are multiples of 4, so clean divisions are easy to find. The odd one out, the 11, is worth a second look.
Playing past puzzles needs a free account. They don't count toward your streak.
How people did
On the day, 22 people played it and 12 solved it (55%).
Medals among the 12 who solved it:
How to think about it
- Work backward. Ask what two numbers make 14, then whether you can build them from what you have.
- Find the even splits. Division has to come out even, so spot the pairs that divide cleanly early.
- Make a 1 to use up a spare number. Two numbers one apart subtract to 1, and × 1 or ÷ 1 changes nothing.
- Break big numbers into tens. 7 × 16 is 70 + 42; 91 ÷ 7 is 70 ÷ 7 + 21 ÷ 7, or 10 + 3.
Hints and an answer
Tap one at a time to open it.
Hint 1: think about the target
The last move makes 14. It can add or subtract two numbers you've built, multiply two (14 = 2 × 7), or divide a multiple of 14 by the right number (28 ÷ 2, 42 ÷ 3, 56 ÷ 4…). Look at the numbers you have: which of those could you build?
Every answer uses ÷.
Hint 2: a first move
Try 4 + 8 = 12.
Hint 3: how it ends
The last move is 11 + 3 = 14. So the job is building 11 and 3 from the numbers.
Walk through it
Every answer uses ÷, so look for a clean division first. The 4, 8, 12 and 16 all divide by 4, which gives you plenty of choices.
Now the odd one out. The 11 is just 3 short of 14, so if the other four numbers can make 3, the last move is 11 + 3 = 14.
Making 3 is a division: 12 ÷ 4 = 3, if you can build a 12 and a 4. The 4 and 8 add up to 12, and 16 − 12 = 4. So 4 + 8 = 12, 16 − 12 = 4, 12 ÷ 4 = 3, and 11 + 3 = 14.
Show an answer
- 4 + 8 = 12
- 16 − 12 = 4
- 12 ÷ 4 = 3
Turn it around: 4 × 3 = 12, so 12 ÷ 4 = 3. - 11 + 3 = 14
One of 21 different answers.
Other ways to get there
- (11 − 4) × ((16 + 8) ÷ 12)
Treat 14 as 7 × 2 instead: 11 − 4 = 7, and 16 + 8 = 24 with 24 ÷ 12 = 2. Then 7 × 2 = 14. - (4 + (11 × (16 ÷ 8))) − 12
Double the 11: 16 ÷ 8 = 2 and 11 × 2 = 22. Then 4 + 22 = 26, and 26 − 12 = 14. - ((11 × 12) − (16 + 4)) ÷ 8
The big one: 11 × 12 = 132, take away 16 + 4 = 20 to get 112, and 112 ÷ 8 = 14. To divide it in your head, split 112 into 80 and 32, two parts that 8 goes into.