Friday 18 September 2026

How it works

Every witness is either honest or a liar. An honest witness only says true things, and a liar only says false ones, like the knights and knaves in Raymond Smullyan's puzzles. Each of them makes one statement below. Your job is to mark every witness honest or liar so that all the statements hold up together. Exactly one way of doing that works, and you can reach it by reasoning alone: try a guess, follow what it forces, and drop it the moment two statements clash.

The statements

1. The CarpenterIf I am honest, then so is the Butcher.
2. The BrewerIf the Carpenter is honest, then so is the Clockmaker.
3. The TailorAt least five of us are liars.
4. The ClockmakerExactly three of us are liars.
5. The ButcherThe Brewer is a liar.
6. The PianistThe Carpenter and the Butcher are different kinds.