Puzzle | Mislabeled Jars

Last Updated : 10 Apr, 2026

There are three jars labelled A, B, and C, and all are incorrectly labelled.

  • Jar A: “Candies”
  • Jar B: “Sweets”
  • Jar C: “Candies and Sweets” (mixed)

You are allowed to pick only one item at a time from any jar, and candies and sweets can only be identified after picking.

What is the minimum number of items you need to pick to correctly label all three jars?

jar1

Check if you were right - full answer with solution below.  

Solution:

Step 1: Start with Jar C (labeled “Candies & Sweets”)

  • All jars are incorrectly labeled.
  • So, Jar C cannot be a mixture.
  • It must contain only Candies or only Sweets.
  • Pick one item from Jar C.
  • Suppose you get a candy → Jar C = Candies only
jar2_

Step 2: Identify Jar B

  • Jar B is labeled “Sweets”, but labels are wrong.
  • So, Jar B cannot be only sweets.
  • It also cannot be candies (because Jar C already has candies).
  • Therefore, Jar B must be Candies & Sweets (mixture)
jar_3

Step 3: Identify Jar A

  • Only option left is Sweets
  • So, Jar A = Sweets

Final Result

  • Jar A contains Sweets.
  • Jar B contains Candies and Sweets (mixture).
  • Jar C contains Candies.
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