2,062 Easy Riddles With Answers - page 10 of 21
Give it a toss, and it's ready, but not until it's dressed. What is it?
A salad is tossed together and isn't considered ready until it's topped with dressing.
You can tumble in it, roll in it, burn it. Animals eat it. Used to cover floors, still used beyond stall doors. Freshens whatever it is placed on. Absorbs whatever is poured into it. What is it?
Hay is used for playful tumbling, animal feed and bedding, and floor covering in barns and stalls, soaking up moisture and odor wherever it's spread.
There was a green house. Inside the green house there was a white house. Inside the white house there was a red house. Inside the red house there were lots of babies. What is it?
A watermelon has a green rind, a whitish layer beneath it, red flesh inside, and numerous black seeds ("babies") scattered throughout.
It can be cracked, it can be made, it can be told, it can be played. What is it?
You can 'crack' a joke, 'make' one up, 'tell' it to others, or 'play' a joke on someone, all common phrases for the same word.
It's got twists and turns, but has no curves. Twist it to fix it, turn it to ruin it. What is it?
Solving a Rubik's Cube involves twisting its layers; the right twists solve it while random turns scramble it, and it's built entirely of straight edges with no curves.
Thousands of these come together to make a digital image. What is it?
A pixel is the tiniest single dot of color, and a digital photo is made of thousands of them arranged in a grid.
Round as an apple, deep as a cup, and all the king's horses can't fill it up. What is it?
A well's shaft goes so deep into the earth that no amount of water poured in from above can ever fill it to the top.
What is it that makes tears without sorrow and takes its journey to heaven?
Smoke stings the eyes and makes them water even though nothing is sad, and it drifts upward toward the sky as it rises.
What is it that leaps and runs and yet, has no feet?
A ball bounces and rolls ('leaps and runs') across the ground, all without having any feet of its own.
What fruit is always sad?
This is a play on 'blueberry' containing the word 'blue,' slang for feeling sad.
I am the sweetest and most romantic fruit. What am I?
Honeydew is a sweet green melon whose name puns on the affectionate term 'honey, do' used between sweethearts.
What kind of food do mummies like to eat?
Mummies are wrapped in bandages, making "wraps," like a wrap sandwich, a punny food choice for them.
Why is 6 afraid of 7?
This classic pun turns "seven ate nine" into "7, 8, 9," implying 7 "ate" 9, which would scare 6, who comes right before 7.
I am milky white and scares people. What am I?
Ghosts are traditionally depicted as pale, milky-white apparitions that frighten people.
This heavy and ancient suit was not worn with a tie, but was always worn in battle.
Suits of armor were heavy protective battle gear, unlike a modern suit worn with a tie.
What food lives at the beach?
This is a pun: 'sandwich' sounds like 'sand-witch,' and beaches are made of sand.
A stylish winter top that covers your larynx.
A turtleneck sweater's high collar covers the neck and throat area, including the larynx.
What can go through glass without breaking it?
This passes right through a window pane without shattering it at all.
Raise your right appendage high above your head. Turn your head to the right and you will smell this.
Raising your arm and turning your head toward it puts your nose right by your underarm.
People need me yet they give me away every day. What am I?
Everyone depends on money to live, yet they spend and hand it over constantly in everyday transactions.
What has a tongue but no mouth?
A shoe has a 'tongue' -- the flap under the laces -- but obviously no mouth.
Noah survived one and it was great.
This refers to the Great Flood in the Bible, which Noah and his family survived aboard the ark. (The source prints this answer as 'food' due to an OCR ligature glitch that drops the letter 'l' from 'flood'; corrected here.)
If I drink, I die. If I eat, I am fine. What am I?
Water ("drinking") extinguishes a fire, while feeding it fuel ("eating") only helps it keep burning.
This is a baked snack that is traditionally twisted into a unique knot-like shape.
Pretzels are famously twisted into their signature knotted loop shape before baking.
Both guys and women enhance their visual organs with this item.
This cosmetic product is applied around the eyes to enhance their appearance.
Fuels backyard get-togethers.
Charcoal is the classic fuel used in backyard grills for cookouts and barbecues.
The more you look at it, The less you see.
Staring directly at the bright sun actually damages your eyes and impairs your vision, so the longer you look, the less you can see.
A single seater best accompanied by circus music and great balance.
A unicycle has just one seat and one wheel, requires excellent balance to ride, and is a classic prop in circus acts set to circus music.
Possibly the word most commonly said before taking a sip.
"Cheers" is the most common word people say while raising a glass before drinking.
Prior to smartphones, people used this to record their lives.
Before smartphones had built-in cameras, people used handheld camcorders to film home videos of their lives.
Meat that has been cured by being cut into long, thin strips and dried.
Jerky is meat preserved by slicing it thin and drying it, unlike bacon or ham which are cured differently.
There's one in every deck of cards and in a famous movie.
Every standard deck includes a Joker card, and 'Joker' is also the title of a famous movie and Batman villain.
What is found over your head but under your hat?
Hair grows on top of your head, situated between your skull and whatever hat you might be wearing.
What is made of wood but can't be sawed?
Sawdust is the wood shavings left over after sawing, so it has already been 'sawed' into dust and can't be sawed again.
A toy that requires some string and a breezy day.
Flying a kite requires a length of string and a windy day to keep it aloft.
I go around all the places; cities, towns and villages, but never come inside. What am I?
Streets run through cities, towns, and villages, connecting buildings, but they always remain outside those buildings themselves.
What can you throw but not catch?
You can "throw" a party (host one), but a party itself cannot be physically caught.
What is something you will never see again?
Yesterday is always one day behind today, so once it has passed you can never experience that exact day again.
Some adults still use these to count.
Many adults still count on their fingers, even though it's often thought of as a childhood habit.
Where is the ocean deepest?
This is a joke answer: no matter where you measure, the ocean is always deepest at its very bottom.
What part of a fish weighs most?
This is a pun: a fish's 'scales' are what you'd use to weigh it, since 'scales' also means a weighing instrument.
What is the largest living ant on earth?
Hidden inside the word 'elephant' is the word 'ant,' and elephants are famously enormous.
What follows a dog wherever it goes?
A dog's tail is physically attached to it, so it trails behind the dog no matter where it goes.
What is never eaten before lunch?
Dinner is the meal that comes after lunch, so by definition it is never eaten before it -- a simple sequence riddle rather than wordplay.
Feed me and I live, yet give me a drink and I die. What am I?
Feeding fire with fuel keeps it burning ('alive'), but pouring water on it ('a drink') extinguishes it -- a rephrased version of an earlier fire riddle.
What's higher than the king?
A king's crown physically sits above his head, making it 'higher' than the king himself.
What breaks on the water but never on the land?
Ocean waves crest and "break" on the water's surface, but this specific kind of breaking doesn't occur on dry land.
What is so delicate that even mentioning it breaks it?
The word 'silence' is broken the instant you speak it out loud -- saying it defeats the very thing it names.
The more you take from me, the bigger I get. What am I?
Digging out (removing material from) a hole only makes the hole itself larger.
What's always coming, but never arrives?
"Tomorrow" is always one day ahead of today -- once it comes, it has become "today," so tomorrow itself never truly arrives.
What number do you get when you multiply all of the numbers on a telephone's number pad?
Every phone keypad includes the digit 0, and multiplying any set of numbers that includes zero always results in zero.
What has hands but can not clap?
A clock has "hands," its pointers, but, lacking real arms, obviously can't clap them together.
What is the last thing you take off before bed?
The final physical action before getting into bed is lifting your feet off the floor, a literal rather than clothing-related answer.
What type of bow can never be tied?
A rainbow's arc is called a 'bow,' but unlike a shoelace or ribbon bow, it can never physically be tied.
A plane crashed on the border or US and Canada. Where do they bury the survivors?
Survivors, by definition, are still alive and therefore aren't buried at all.
What lives when it eats and dies when it drinks?
Fire 'eats' fuel to keep burning but is put out ('dies') the moment it 'drinks' water. (Source key spelled this 'fre' too, the same dropped-ligature OCR artifact for 'fire.')
I can fall off a building and live, but in water I will die. What am I?
Paper can flutter harmlessly from a great height but becomes soggy and ruined the instant it touches water.
I am a vegetable that bugs stay away from. What am I?
Squash plants are said to naturally repel certain garden pests, and the vegetable's name is also the word for crushing a bug.
Has a tongue, but never talks. Has no legs, but sometimes walks.
A shoe has a "tongue" (the flap over the laces) and "walks" wherever its wearer's legs take it.
What has four legs, but can't walk?
A table typically has four legs, but as furniture it obviously can't walk on them.
What do pandas have that no other animal has?
Only pandas can give birth to baby pandas — every species uniquely produces its own offspring.
You can drop me from the tallest building and I'll be fine, but if you drop me in water I die. What am I?
Paper is light enough to survive a fall from a tall building, but it quickly gets soaked and ruined if it lands in water.
What goes up when rain comes down?
People open and raise umbrellas over their heads whenever rain starts falling.
I am full of holes but still holds water. What am I?
A sponge is riddled with tiny holes yet can still soak up and hold water within its structure. (A near-identical riddle, #977 in the source, repeats this exact question and answer and was merged into this entry as a duplicate.)
They come out at night without being called, and are lost in the day without being stolen. What are they?
Stars appear in the night sky on their own and seem to vanish ("are lost") in daylight, though they haven't actually been taken.
What is a witch's favorite school subject?
It's a pun -- witches cast 'spells,' so their favorite subject would be spelling.
What has 88 keys but can't open a single door?
This musical instrument's 'keys' are for playing notes, not unlocking anything.
Everyone has it and no one can lose it. What is it?
Everyone casts a shadow whenever they're in light, and since it's tied to your body, you can never truly lose it.
What goes through towns and over hills but never moves?
A road stretches through towns and over hills, but the road itself is stationary -- it's the travelers who move along it.
You can hold it without using your hands or your arms. What is it?
You can "hold your breath" without using your hands or arms at all -- it's done internally.
What is a Mummy's favorite type of music?
A mummy is wrapped in bandages, making 'wrap' -- a homophone of 'rap' -- its fitting favorite genre.
Everyone has me but nobody can lose me. What am I?
A shadow belongs to everyone who stands in the light, and unlike a wallet or keys, there is no way to physically lose it.
I shave several times a day, yet I still have a beard. Who am I?
A barber shaves customers' beards all day for a living, even though he himself may still be growing his own.
The more you have of me, the less you see. Who am I?
As darkness increases, visibility decreases -- the more darkness there is, the less you can see.
What is the coolest and most awesome of all the vegetables?
This is a pun -- "radish" sounds like "rad-ish," meaning "somewhat rad," using slang for cool or awesome.
What fruit loves to go crazy and go wild?
This plays on the idiom 'going bananas,' meaning to act wild or crazy.
What is the wealthiest nut?
"Cashew" sounds like "cash," matching the riddle's theme of wealth.
I have numbers on my face but can't find 13 any place. What am I?
A standard clock face shows the numbers 1 through 12, so the number 13 never appears on it.
What can you hear but not touch or see?
Your voice is audible to others and yourself, but it has no physical form to see or touch.
What gets bigger the more you take away?
Digging more material out of the ground only makes this opening larger.
I go up and down at the same time. Up towards to sky and down towards the ground. What am I?
This playground toy has two ends that move in opposite directions simultaneously.
What is something you can hold without ever touching?
You can "hold" your breath by not exhaling, without ever physically touching it.
What is easy to get into, and hard to get out of?
It's simple to make a mistake that lands you here, but much harder to fix the consequences.
What has a tongue but cannot talk, gets around a lot but cannot walk?
A shoe has a 'tongue' flap and travels wherever its wearer walks, but it has no ability to speak or move on its own.
I always have to work with something in my eye. What am I?
A needle has an 'eye' -- the hole thread passes through -- and sewing always involves working through it.
You answer me, although I never ask you questions. What am I?
When this device rings, you pick it up and answer it, even though it never literally asks anything.
I will disappear every time you say my name. What am I?
The moment silence is spoken about out loud, it's broken — the word itself undoes the thing it names.
What is used by man, tossed by trees, everywhere but unseen?
Every person breathes air, trees toss it around as wind rustles their leaves, and it surrounds us everywhere despite being invisible.
What has 4 fingers and a thumb, but is not living?
A glove is shaped exactly like a hand, with four finger slots and a thumb slot, but it's just fabric or leather, not alive.
It's shorter than the rest, but when you're happy, you raise it up like it's the best. What is it?
The thumb is shorter than the other fingers, and raising it in a 'thumbs up' is the universal sign of approval.
What is so delicate that saying its name breaks it?
The moment you speak the word aloud, you've made a sound and ended the quiet.
What is always coming but never arrives?
Tomorrow is always one day away; by the time it arrives, it has become "today," so tomorrow itself never truly gets here.
I have a face but no eyes, hands but no arms. What am I?
A clock's face has no real eyes, and its 'hands' are simply pointers with no actual arms attached.
What did zero say to eight?
The numeral 8 looks like a 0 wearing a belt around its middle, which is the visual joke behind the punchline.
I have keys but no locks. I have space but no room. You can enter but can't go outside. What am I?
A computer keyboard is packed with keys and has no locks, yet a 'space' bar and confined layout still let you 'enter' text without ever leaving it.
Which word in the dictionary is spelled incorrectly?
This is a classic trick: literally, the word 'incorrectly' means 'in a wrong way,' so it jokingly counts as the one word that is 'spelled incorrectly.'
I make billions of dollars selling Windows. Who am I?
Microsoft is the company famous for making its Windows operating system, which generates billions of dollars in revenue.
I'm a ring of sliced onion dipped in batter and then deep fried.
The clue directly describes the classic snack: battered, deep-fried rings of sliced onion.
What turns everything around but does not move?
A mirror reflects everything as a reversed (left-right flipped) image, all while the mirror itself remains stationary.
What cannot talk but will always reply when spoken to?
An echo has no voice of its own, yet it reflects back whatever sound or words are spoken toward it.