Matchstick puzzle. Move two matchsticks to make four squares. Solution explained.

  

Move two matchsticks to make four identical squares. The resulting shape cannot be 3D, and there should not be any loose ends or overlapping matchsticks.

Solution

When the question includes phrases such as “make two squares, triangles, etc.,” one thing that almost always helps is counting the total number of matchsticks you are being asked to use. In this case, it’s 16. Moreover, not only are we making four squares, we are making four “identical” squares. We don’t have enough matches to make four identical squares with the side length of two matchsticks. Our squares can only have the side length of one matchstick.

With this in mind, it’s easy to realize that none of the four squares can share sides. 16 is exactly 4 (the number of squares we are making) multiplied by 4 (the number of sides one square has). Sharing sides will result in leftover matchsticks, or “loose ends.”

All we have to do is separate the squares that share sides.

 

I sometimes forget that these things can also light fire.