What is 16 times greater than 17?

16 times greater than 17 seems easy enough, but is it?

Let's assume the answer = 272 (since 16 x 17 = 272). Then shouldn't this statement be true?:

272 is greater than 16 x 17.

But that is not true. 272 is not greater than 16 x 17. It is the same!

To make it greater, we could make make a formula like (a+1)b where a=16 and b=17 to get this answer:

(16 + 1) x 17 = 289

But if that is the case, why not simply say "What is 17 times 17?" instead of saying "times greater than?"

We do not think there is a correct answer, because the question can be misinterpreted.

It seems that when many people write 16 times greater than 17, they mean 16 times as much as 17 which equals 272. We recommend that you ask them to clarify what they mean.

Times Greater Than Calculator
Go here for our Times Greater Than Calculator.

What is 16 times greater than 18?
Go here for a similar problem that may also interest you.