Use “Save as PDF” in the print dialog for best results

SeniorBrainGames.org

Number Patterns

Name:

Date:

Instructions: Can you figure out what comes next? Test your pattern recognition with these number sequences!

1.
What comes next in the pattern? 2, 4, 6, 8, ___
A
10
B
11
C
9
D
12
2.
What comes next? 3, 6, 12, 24, ___
A
36
B
48
C
30
D
96
3.
What comes next? 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, ___
A
15
B
10
C
11
D
13
4.
What comes next? 100, 90, 80, 70, ___
A
65
B
50
C
60
D
55
5.
What comes next? 1, 4, 9, 16, 25, ___
A
36
B
30
C
49
D
34
6.
What comes next? 2, 5, 10, 17, 26, ___
A
39
B
35
C
37
D
41
7.
What comes next? 1, 3, 7, 15, 31, ___
A
63
B
55
C
47
D
72
8.
What comes next? 5, 10, 20, 40, 80, ___
A
100
B
120
C
160
D
140
9.
What comes next? 1, 2, 4, 7, 11, 16, ___
A
20
B
22
C
21
D
23
10.
What comes next? 3, 9, 27, 81, ___
A
162
B
243
C
324
D
189
11.
What comes next? 0, 1, 3, 6, 10, 15, ___
A
25
B
20
C
21
D
18
12.
What comes next? 2, 6, 18, 54, ___
A
162
B
108
C
128
D
216
13.
What comes next? 1, 8, 27, 64, ___
A
125
B
216
C
100
D
128
14.
What comes next? 50, 45, 40, 35, 30, ___
A
20
B
28
C
25
D
24
15.
What comes next? 2, 3, 5, 7, 11, 13, ___
A
19
B
21
C
15
D
17
16.
What comes next? 4, 8, 16, 32, 64, ___
A
256
B
128
C
96
D
100
17.
What comes next? 1, 4, 2, 5, 3, 6, ___
A
8
B
9
C
4
D
7
18.
What comes next? 10, 11, 13, 16, 20, ___
A
25
B
23
C
26
D
24
19.
What comes next? 1, 2, 6, 24, 120, ___
A
480
B
720
C
600
D
240
20.
What comes next? 1, 3, 6, 10, 15, 21, 28, ___
A
40
B
32
C
36
D
35

Answer Key

Question 1

A. 10

Each number increases by 2. So after 8, the next number is 10.

Question 2

B. 48

Each number is doubled (multiplied by 2). So 24 × 2 = 48.

Question 3

D. 13

This is the Fibonacci sequence — each number is the sum of the two before it. 5 + 8 = 13.

Question 4

C. 60

Each number decreases by 10. So after 70, the next number is 60.

Question 5

A. 36

These are perfect squares: 1², 2², 3², 4², 5². The next is 6² = 36.

Question 6

C. 37

The differences increase by 2 each time: +3, +5, +7, +9, +11. So 26 + 11 = 37.

Question 7

A. 63

Each number is double the previous number plus 1. So 31 × 2 + 1 = 63. (Also: 2ⁿ − 1 pattern.)

Question 8

C. 160

Each number is doubled. So 80 × 2 = 160.

Question 9

B. 22

The differences increase by 1 each time: +1, +2, +3, +4, +5, +6. So 16 + 6 = 22.

Question 10

B. 243

Each number is multiplied by 3. These are powers of 3: 3¹, 3², 3³, 3⁴. Next is 3⁵ = 243.

Question 11

C. 21

These are triangular numbers. The differences increase by 1: +1, +2, +3, +4, +5, +6. So 15 + 6 = 21.

Question 12

A. 162

Each number is multiplied by 3. So 54 × 3 = 162.

Question 13

A. 125

These are perfect cubes: 1³, 2³, 3³, 4³. The next is 5³ = 125.

Question 14

C. 25

Each number decreases by 5. So after 30, the next number is 25.

Question 15

D. 17

These are prime numbers (divisible only by 1 and themselves). The next prime after 13 is 17.

Question 16

B. 128

Each number is doubled. So 64 × 2 = 128. These are powers of 2 starting from 2².

Question 17

C. 4

Two interleaved sequences: 1, 2, 3, 4... and 4, 5, 6, 7... The next number in the first sequence is 4.

Question 18

A. 25

The differences increase by 1: +1, +2, +3, +4, +5. So 20 + 5 = 25.

Question 19

B. 720

These are factorials: 1!, 2!, 3!, 4!, 5!. The next is 6! = 720.

Question 20

C. 36

These are triangular numbers. The differences increase by 1: +2, +3, +4, +5, +6, +7, +8. So 28 + 8 = 36.

Find more free puzzles and brain games at www.SeniorBrainGames.org