If it takes five machines five minutes to make five items, how long would it take 100 machines to make 100 items?

To determine how long it would take 100 machines to make 100 items, it's essential to first understand the production rate established in the question. If five machines take five minutes to make five items, this indicates that each machine produces one item in five minutes.

Scaling this up, if there are 100 machines, they can work simultaneously. Since each machine still produces one item in five minutes, all 100 machines can produce 100 items in the same five minutes.

This means that regardless of how many machines are involved, the time taken remains the same—five minutes—when producing the same corresponding number of items. Thus, it takes 100 machines five minutes to make 100 items.