2,066 Medium Riddles With Answers - page 2 of 21
What do you get when you cross a vampire and a teacher?
The joke plays on a vampire's thirst for blood and a teacher's habit of giving tests, combining into "a blood test."
It has no top or bottom, but it can hold flesh, bones, and blood all at the same time.
A ring is a continuous loop with no top or bottom, yet it encircles a finger's flesh, bone, and blood when worn.
Can be achieved in a car or as a position during conflict.
"Neutral" is a gear setting in a car and also describes a non-aligned stance taken during a conflict.
As I walked along the path I saw something with four fingers and one thumb, but it was not flesh, fish, bone, or fowl.
A glove is shaped like a hand with four fingers and a thumb, but it's made of fabric or leather, not living tissue.
He stands beside the road in a purple cap and tattered green cloak. Those who touch him, curse him.
A thistle has a purple flower head atop rough green, spiky leaves, and its sharp prickles make anyone who touches it wince and curse.
Causes dancing in children when it fills up.
A full bladder makes children do the classic "potty dance" as they try to hold it in.
This sparkling globe can float on water. It is light as a feather, but ten giants can't pick it up.
A soap bubble is nearly weightless and can float on water, yet it's so fragile that even the gentlest grip, let alone ten giants, would pop it instead of picking it up.
By the way, what never moves, wears shoes, sandals and boots, but has no feet?
People wearing shoes, sandals, and boots walk over the sidewalk all day, even though the sidewalk itself never moves and has no feet.
You will have this response if you would go salivating at the mention of a cheeseburger.
Pavlov's experiments showed that a learned cue, like the mention of food, can trigger an automatic physical reaction such as salivating, a "pavlovian" response.
I can be written, I can be spoken, I can be exposed, I can be broken.
News can be written in a paper, spoken on air, exposed by investigation, and "broken," as in breaking news.
What can your pocket hold while it is completely empty?
An empty pocket can still "hold" a hole, the opening or tear where things fall through, even though there's nothing else inside.
Both peaches and a certain couture have this in common.
Peaches are known for being "juicy," which is also the name of the fashion brand Juicy Couture.
I have been the beginning of ideas for all time, yet I am just one simple small object. The things that you can use me for can be frustrating and also I can be pretty. I have some of the most valuable things in the world on me, yet almost everyone owns me. With me you can make anything. What am I?
Ideas often start as notes or sketches on paper; paper carries valuable things like money and documents, nearly everyone has some, and you can fold, write, or draw on it to make almost anything.
What is the difference between one yard and two yards?
This is a pun -- a fence is literally what separates (is the difference between) two neighboring yards.
My children are near and far. No matter that, I know where they are. The gift I give them makes their day. But if I were gone they would wander away.
Everything on Earth depends on the sun's light and warmth, its "gift," to survive; without the sun, everything would drift aimlessly in the dark.
Though easy to spot, when allowed to plume, it is hard to see, when held in a room.
Smoke billowing outside is easy to spot, but when trapped and thinned in a small room it becomes harder to visually pick out in the air.
When the horse strokes the cat, the wood begins to sing.
A violin bow is strung with horsehair, drawn across strings historically made of catgut, producing music from the instrument's wooden body.
By Thursday you're over this.
Wednesday is nicknamed "hump day," the midpoint of the workweek, so by Thursday you're already past, or "over," the hump.
Without it sounds would not be there, but through it music's ring is clear. It is a symbol for your woe, but only if your name's Van Gogh.
We hear ("music's ring is clear") through our ears, and an ear became a symbol of tragedy for Vincent van Gogh, who famously cut off part of his own ear.
I am what brings things together. Without me everything you see would be a total mass of debris everywhere. What am I?
Gravity holds matter together into planets, stars, and everyday objects; without it, matter would simply drift apart into scattered debris.
What happens every second, minute, month, and century, but not every hour, week, year, or decade?
The letter N appears in "second," "minute," "month," and "century," but not in "hour," "week," "year," or "decade."
It is the time in your life when you simultaneously know everything and nothing at an instance.
Teenagers are famously seen as feeling like they know everything about life while still having so much left to learn, a case of knowing "everything and nothing" at once.
Everyone loses us as a child, and neglecting us makes us holy. What are we?
Children lose their baby teeth naturally, and neglecting to brush your teeth leads to cavities, which is a pun on "holey" and "holy."
I am wood that is neither hard, straight, nor crooked. What am I?
Sawdust is made from wood but, once cut into fine particles, is no longer hard, straight, or crooked like a plank or branch.
If you happen to wear one of these warm garments around, you might get doused in red paint.
Animal-rights activists have historically thrown red paint on people wearing fur coats to protest the use of animal fur.
A slow, solemn square-dance of warriors feinting. One by one they fall, warriors fainting, thirty-two on sixty-four.
Chess has 32 pieces moving across a 64-square board, poetically described as warriors 'falling' (being captured) one by one.
What goes round and round the wood but never goes into the wood?
Tree bark wraps entirely around the wood of the trunk without ever penetrating into the wood itself.
Royalty whose burgers are broiled and whose bed is large.
Burger King flame-broils its burgers, and a "king-size" bed is the largest common mattress size -- both use the word "king."
What is drawn by everyone without pen or pencil?
Everyone "draws" (breathes in) breath continuously, playing on the double meaning of "draw."
Where on earth do the ways always blow from the south?
At the North Pole, every direction you face is south, so any wind necessarily blows from the south.
What needs to be taken from you before you have it?
A picture (photograph) must be "taken" of you before you can "have" a copy of it, playing on the double meaning of "take."
In addition to the dental benefits, having one of these hanging out of your mouth will make you look like a wiseguy.
Classic gangster ("wiseguy") movie imagery includes a toothpick dangling from the mouth; toothpicks also have the practical dental benefit of cleaning teeth.
A house of wood in a hidden place. Built without nails or glue. High above the earthen ground. It holds pale gems of blue.
A bird builds its nest from twigs high in a tree without any tools, and it can hold pale blue eggs like a robin's.
What do rich people have that can be changed into the law.
This is a loose fit in the source material -- a sharper pun would be 'bill' (a dollar bill / a legislative bill that becomes law), but the stated answer, 'wealth,' points to how the wealthy can shape legislation.
What makes my left hand my right?
A mirror image reverses left and right, so your left hand appears to be a right hand in the reflection.
Four holes, one going in and three coming out; When you are going in you are out and when you are coming out you are in.
Pulling on a shirt (going in) leaves you not yet dressed (out), while finishing (coming out through the neck and sleeve holes) means you're now properly dressed (in it).
Nothing specific, but more than a few. This many clustered, together will do.
'A bunch' vaguely means more than a few of something gathered together, without specifying an exact number.
A blind superhero and Evel Knievel's profession.
Daredevil is a blind Marvel superhero, and 'daredevil' is also the term for a fearless stunt performer like Evel Knievel.
What work of writing can one never finish?
An autobiography covers your own life story, which isn't over until you die -- so it can never truly be finished while you're alive to write it.
Vikings use this for warmth.
Vikings historically wore animal furs and pelts to stay warm in cold climates.
I am found by the ocean and offer you a bed. Whether you want me or not, to your house I am led?
Beach sand provides a place to lay down ('a bed'), and it inevitably tags along home in shoes, towels, and bags whether you like it or not.
A bird done at every meal.
'Swallow' is both a bird and the act of swallowing food, done at every meal.
A path between high natural masses; remove the first letter to get a path between man-made masses.
A 'valley' runs between mountains, and removing its first letter leaves 'alley,' a narrow passage between buildings.
Even the oldest ones can be described as current, but a little mainstream.
A river always has a 'current' (flow of water) and a 'mainstream' (main channel) -- a clever double meaning even for the oldest rivers.
Good for telling the future or racking up in a game.
A Magic 8-Ball answers yes/no fortune questions, and the '8 ball' is also a numbered ball racked up in a game of pool.
I am bushy headed but have no air. No moisture will not enter my skin, but it's good at keeping it in. What am I?
A tree's canopy of leaves looks bushy, and its bark is a barrier that helps keep moisture locked inside the trunk.
I help to mature your spirits. When moistened I fulfill my purpose. Should I dry out, my task will fail and my quarry may be worthless.
A wine cork must stay moist to keep its seal tight; if it dries out and shrinks, the wine ('spirits') aging inside can spoil.
Who plays when he works and works when he plays?
An actor's job is to 'play' a role, so performing on stage is both their work and, in a sense, their play.
They have not flesh, nor feathers, nor scales, nor bone. Yet they have fingers and thumbs of their own. What are they?
Gloves are made of fabric or leather, not living tissue, yet they're shaped with individual fingers and a thumb.
If you give it a tug, you can sit in the dark. Tug it again and a light will spark. What is it?
A pull-string lamp turns off with one tug, plunging the room into darkness, and turns back on with another.
A tower at the root of all confusion.
In the Bible, the Tower of Babel is where humanity's single language was confused into many different tongues.
It has no legs to dance, it has no lungs to breathe, it has no life to live or die, and yet it does all three.
Flickering flames seem to 'dance,' fire needs oxygen as if it 'breathes,' and it can be 'born' and 'die out' despite having no actual life.
In buckles or lace, they help set the pace. The farther you go, the thinner they grow.
Shoes are fastened with buckles or laces and help you keep a walking pace, while their soles wear thinner the more ground you cover.
Sometimes you'll find me hard and cold, other times I'm hard to hold, always present in the air, if I'm ever gone, beware.
Water can freeze into hard ice, slip through your hands as liquid, and exist as vapor in the air -- and life is impossible without it.
Where humans breathe liquid.
Before birth, a baby floats in amniotic fluid inside the womb and effectively 'breathes' liquid rather than air.
White bird, featherless, flying out of paradise. Flying over sea and land. Dying in my hand.
Snowflakes are poetically described as white, featherless 'birds' falling from the sky, and they melt ('die') the moment they land in your warm hand.
What has a head, can't think, but drives?
A hammer has a solid metal 'head' with no mind of its own, but it's used to drive nails into place.
I have legs but walk not, a strong back but work not. Two good arms but reach not. A seat but sit and tarry not.
A chair has legs, a back, arms, and a seat, but as furniture it never actually walks, works, reaches, or sits itself.
Soft and fragile is my skin. I get my growth in dirt. I'm dangerous as much as pretty. For if not careful, I draw blood.
A rose's petals are delicate and grow from soil, but its beauty comes with sharp thorns that can prick and draw blood.
There are millions of me. I am very small but when moving fast I am deadly.
Individual grains of sand are tiny and harmless, but wind-driven sand moving fast enough, as in a sandstorm, can be dangerous.
It covers you, you lose it every day and you'd die without it.
Skin cells constantly shed and regenerate every day, and skin itself is essential for survival.
Something you do with guests at a fancy party hoping to get a leg-up in your career.
'Schmoozing' means chatting in a friendly, ingratiating way with people, often to gain a professional advantage.
What has one foot but no body?
A ruler is often exactly one 'foot' long (12 inches), but obviously has no physical body.
What holds names and memories which are not its own?
A gravestone is inscribed with the name and memory of the deceased person, information that belongs to someone else, not the stone itself.
I run through hills. I veer around mountains. I leap over rivers. And crawl through the forests. Step out your door to find me.
Roads wind through hilly and mountainous terrain, cross rivers via bridges, and cut through forests, right outside your front door.
One pace to the North. Two paces to the East. Two paces to the South. Two paces to the West. One pace to the North.
Tracing those directions and distances out closes a path that forms a square shape.
A tangly game and a destructive weather phenomenon.
'Twister' is both the name of the game where players tangle their limbs on a mat and a common term for a tornado.
I am a three letter word. Add two more letters and you'll have fewer. What word am I?
'Few' has three letters; adding 'er' makes 'fewer,' which means a smaller amount.
I fly through the air on small feathered wings, seeking out life and destroying all things.
An arrow has feathered fletching that stabilizes its flight, and it's shot to strike and kill living targets.
What becomes too young the longer it exists?
A portrait captures a person at one fixed age forever; the longer it exists, the further behind -- 'younger' -- it falls compared to how old the real person becomes. This is a loosely worded riddle that relies on a somewhat poetic reading.
A small hill with seven holes.
The human head is like a small hill with seven natural openings: two eyes, two ears, two nostrils, and a mouth.
I come in winter. I cannot see, hear, or feel. I can't eat, but you can eat parts of me.
A snowman is built in winter and has no real senses, but children often give it a carrot nose or candy features that can be eaten.
What comes in many different sizes but is always only 1 foot long?
This plays on 'foot' meaning both a unit of length and a human foot -- a shoe always fits exactly one foot, no matter its size.
So cold, damp and dark this place. To stay you would refrain, yet those who occupy this place do never complain.
A grave is cold, dark, and unwelcoming to the living, yet its permanent occupants -- the dead -- never object to staying.
Ladies used to party with this kitchen device.
Tupperware parties were a popular mid-20th-century social gathering where hosts demonstrated and sold plastic kitchen storage containers.
It flies when it's on and floats coming off.
A feather helps a bird fly while attached, but once it comes loose it gently floats down to the ground.
A prehistoric reptile that lives today and the inspiration for the name of a popular sports drink.
Gatorade was named after the University of Florida Gators; an alligator (gator) is a reptile whose lineage dates back to prehistoric times and is still alive today.
What is born long, dies short, and spends its life leaving a trail?
A pencil starts out long, gradually gets shorter with use, and leaves a trail of graphite marks wherever it writes.
I will go within you, and destroy you. Only because you wanted me too. What am I?
Drugs are willingly taken by the user, yet they can ultimately cause serious harm or destruction to the body from within.
In birth I spring forth, in life I unfold. In death I wilt and die, but rebirth restores all.
A leaf sprouts in spring, opens up through the growing season, withers and falls in autumn/winter, then returns again each new spring.
I am something many people don't enjoy having as a friend, including you. But I am called upon anything someone is injured.
No one wants pain as a companion, yet it's exactly what shows up the instant someone gets hurt.
When you are a child you are forced to take them. When you are an adult you want to take them.
Kids are made to take naps against their will, while tired adults often wish they still had time to nap.
I have a big mouth and I am also quite loud! I am not a gossip but I do get involved with everyone's dirty business.
A vacuum cleaner has a wide 'mouth' (its nozzle), runs loudly, and gets involved in cleaning up everyone's dirt.
You get one if you miss one at golf.
Every swing in golf, hit or miss, counts as a stroke -- so missing the ball still adds a stroke to your score.
Brothers and sisters I have none but this man's father is my father's son. Who is the man?
Since the speaker has no siblings, 'my father's son' can only be the speaker himself, which means the man's father is the speaker -- so the man is the speaker's son.
In we go, out we go. All around and in a row. Always, always steady flow. When we'll stop, you'll never know. In we go, out we go.
Tides rise (in) and fall (out) in a steady, endless rhythm around the coastline, and no one can say exactly when that cycle will ever stop.
It can cause deflation of tires when dropped from the rear of spy cars.
Spy movies often show tire-deflating spike strips deployed from the back of a getaway car to stop pursuers.
I'm the source of all emotion, but I'm caged in a white prison.
The heart is often said to be the seat of emotion, enclosed and protected within the white cage of the ribs.
Many things can create one, it can be of any shape or size, it is created for various reasons, and it can shrink or grow with time.
All sorts of things -- digging, drilling, wear, decay -- can create a hole, and it can grow or shrink over time in any shape.
I am neither a guest nor a trespasser in this place. I belong that belongs to me. Where is it?
In your own home you are neither a guest nor an intruder -- it is simply the place that belongs to you.
I belong to everyone. Sometimes make you happy, sometimes make you sad. I will never end until the day you do. What am I?
Everyone has thoughts, which can bring happiness or sadness and only stop when a person's life ends.
Its title means book.
The word "Bible" comes from the Greek "biblia," meaning "books" or "book."
The higher I climb, the hotter I engage. I cannot escape from my crystal cage.
As in the earlier thermometer riddle in this set, this describes mercury inside a glass ("crystal") tube, rising higher as the temperature increases -- the two riddles share almost identical wording and the same answer.
People chop this off for a good cause.
People donate their cut hair to organizations that make wigs for those who've lost theirs, such as cancer patients.
You seek it out, when your hunger is ripe. It sits on four legs, and smokes a pipe.
A stove stands on four legs and vents smoke through a pipe, and it's exactly where you head when you're hungry to cook a meal.
What has six faces and twenty-one eyes?
A single die has six flat faces, and the total number of pips ("eyes") on all its faces (1+2+3+4+5+6) adds up to twenty-one.
If I say "everything I tell you is a lie", am I telling you the truth or a lie?
This is the classic liar's paradox; the riddle's given resolution treats the statement itself as a lie, though logically the sentence is self-contradictory.
A dark-colored creature serenaded by Lennon and McCartney.
The Beatles' song "Blackbird," written by Lennon and McCartney, gives this dark-feathered bird its serenade.
What grows bigger the more you contract it?
Every time you "contract" (take on) more debt, the total amount you owe grows larger, despite "contract" usually implying shrinking.
The French word for 'fun size' in women's clothing.
"Petite" is French for small, and it's used in women's clothing sizing much like "fun size" describes small snacks.