New Riddles With Answers - page 11 of 53
I am a lunch money thief. What am I?
Stealing other kids' lunch money is the classic stereotype behavior of a schoolyard bully.
I widen my jaws when you poke two fingers in me. I especially like to devour papers. What am I?
A pair of scissors' blades open wide ('jaws') when your fingers slip into its holes, and it easily slices through paper.
I can't go left, I can't go right. I am forever stuck in a building over three stories high. What am I?
An elevator only moves up and down along its shaft, never side to side, and is common in taller buildings.
I am sometimes white but usually black. I take you there, but I never bring you back. What am I?
A hearse, usually black but sometimes white, transports the deceased to their burial and never brings them home.
I can alter the actions of a king and leave puzzled the greatest of philosophers. What am I?
This old riddle plays on the long-standing (and rather dated) notion that a woman's influence can sway even a king's decisions while remaining endlessly mysterious to philosophers.
I am expelled from you orally with a sound. What am I?
A burp is air expelled from the stomach through the mouth, usually accompanied by a distinct sound.
I am always around, but in the morning I show. You'll know it's me from my golden glow. What am I?
Sunlight is present even when hidden by clouds, but it's most visible each morning, painting the sky with its golden glow.
I belong to everyone. Sometimes I make you happy, sometimes I make you sad. I will never end until the day you do. What am I?
Human thoughts belong uniquely to each person, can swing between happy and sad, and only stop when that person's life does.
I have a body of stone and a fiery heart, and sooner or later my head and I will part. What am I?
A volcano is made of rock with molten lava at its core, and eventually its "head" -- the summit -- blows off in an eruption.
I am a person who pretends to be someone else. What am I?
An impostor is, by definition, someone who deceives others by pretending to be a different person.
Keep doing me to avoid lens dryness. What am I?
Blinking spreads moisture over the eye's surface (the lens), which is why blinking regularly prevents dry eyes.
I am always with my partner, and I make noise that you never see me create. What am I?
Thunder always accompanies its unseen partner, lightning, producing a booming sound without a visible source of its own.
I am too much for one but not enough for two. Give me to a third and I am gone. What am I?
A secret feels like a burden for one person to keep alone, isn't really "shared" between two, and once told to a third person, it stops being a secret at all.
I am in the sky. I'm white, I'm round, but not always. Sometimes you see me, sometimes you don't. What am I?
The moon appears white and round in the sky, but its visible shape changes through phases, and it's not always visible depending on the time of day and weather.
I am part of the bird that is not in the sky. I can swim in the water but always stay dry. What am I?
A bird's shadow glides across water or ground below it as it flies, appearing to skim the surface without ever getting wet.
I encourage people to run home and steal. What am I?
In baseball, runners try to steal bases and race "home" to score -- the sport literally encourages running home and stealing.
Before I came, the world was darker, that's true. But beware, I can also kill you. What am I?
Electricity brought artificial light that pushed back darkness, but it is also dangerous and can be lethal if mishandled.
I have 24 keys but cannot open any locks. Sometimes loud, sometimes soft. What am I?
The "keys" most literally belong to an instrument like a piano or music box, but the source's stated answer is "music" itself, which can indeed sound loud or soft.
I may seem real but it always turns out I was never there in the first place. You only see me during a certain resting stage. What am I?
A dream feels vivid and real, but it never actually happened, and it only occurs during a particular stage of sleep.
I hide in a dark tunnel awaiting my time. I can only be released by pulling back. Once released, I may do unstoppable damage. What am I?
A bullet waits inside a gun's dark barrel until the trigger ('pulling back' the hammer) releases it to strike with force.
I climb higher as I get hotter. I can never escape from my crystal cage. What am I?
Liquid mercury inside a glass thermometer rises up the tube as the temperature increases, but it's always sealed inside the glass "cage."
I have a ring but no fingers. I used to stay still all the time, but nowadays I follow you around. What am I?
A telephone 'rings' (like a bell) and used to be a stationary device before mobile phones made it something people carry everywhere.
Everybody has some. You can lose some, you can gain some. But you cannot live without it. What am I?
Every person has blood in their body; you can lose some (through donation or injury) or need more, but you can't survive without it.
I am a rock group with four members. All dead, one was assassinated. What am I?
Mount Rushmore is carved into rock and depicts four U.S. presidents, all now deceased, one of whom (Lincoln) was assassinated -- a pun on "rock group."
I am the minerals vital for your good health. What am I?
The riddle labels them "minerals," but the answer given is vitamins, essential substances the body needs for good health; strictly speaking vitamins and minerals are different things, so the wording is a loose fit.
I'm the manly mark that milk makes. What am I?
This refers to the "milk mustache," the white smear milk leaves on the upper lip, jokingly tied to the traditionally "manly" mustache.
I can run but not walk. Wherever I go, thought follows close behind. What am I?
A runny nose 'runs' constantly but never physically walks; the rest of the clue is a looser fit, describing the intangible way something (like a sneeze or sniffle) seems to trail right behind it.
Ripped from my mother's womb. Beaten and burned, I become a bloodthirsty killer. What am I?
Iron ore is mined ("ripped") from the earth (its "mother"), then hammered and heated in a forge to be turned into deadly weapons like blades or bullets.
I am a shower that lights up the sky. What am I?
A meteor shower is a burst of shooting stars streaking and glowing across the night sky, like a celestial "shower."
I am a type of weapon for sci-fi characters. What am I?
Laser weapons are a staple sci-fi armament used by futuristic and alien characters in countless films and shows.
I cannot be felt or moved, but as you come closer, I get more distant. What am I?
No matter how far you travel toward the horizon, it always recedes and stays the same distance away -- it can't be touched or physically shifted.
I am a desire to munch. What am I?
A "desire to munch" is simply another way of describing hunger.
I start new then become old. Start clean but be one dirty. I usually start big then become little. What am I?
New shoes start clean and small-feeling, but wear down, get dirty, and (for a growing kid) quickly become too tight.
I am an activity dogs are very good at when a ball is thrown. What am I?
Fetching a thrown ball is one of the classic tricks dogs are trained — and love — to do.
My first two letters say my name. My last letter asks a question. What I embrace I destroy. What am I?
"IVY" starts with letters that sound like its own name, ends in "Y" (sounding like "why," a question word), and as a climbing plant it can strangle and kill the trees it wraps around.
A popular afterlife location to send evil people. What am I?
Hell is the traditional destination in many religions believed to be reserved for wicked souls after death.
Green arrows grow out of my sides. I go from yellow to white. My babies fly in the wind. What am I?
A dandelion has green leaves ("arrows") along its stem, its flower head turns from yellow to white fluff, and its seeds ("babies") fly away on the wind.
No matter how little or how much you use me, you change me every month. What am I?
Every month you flip or replace the page of a calendar regardless of how much you referred to the old one.
I may be made of metal, bone, or wood and have many teeth. My bite hurts no one and the ladies love me. What am I?
A comb is often made of plastic, metal, or bone, has many teeth, and is a favorite grooming tool, especially with long hair.
What force and strength cannot get through, I with my unique teeth can do. What am I?
A locked door can't be forced open by strength alone, but the key's unique cut ('teeth') opens it easily.
I fall from the sky but am not rain. I like the cold and not the sun. People like to eat me. What am I?
Snow falls from the sky like rain but is frozen, needs cold weather to survive, and is sometimes eaten as flavored snow cones or "snow ice cream."
I come in many shapes, sizes, and colors. I stick to many surfaces but I am, in fact, not sticky at all. What am I?
A magnet clings to metal surfaces through magnetic attraction, not because it is physically sticky.
I contain six letters, minus one and you got twelve. What am I?
The word 'dozens' has six letters; drop the final 's' and 'dozen' — meaning twelve — remains.
Only one foot tall but I govern you. What am I?
A ruler is typically twelve inches (one foot) long, and the word "ruler" also means someone who governs — the riddle plays on that double meaning.
I run cold and hot, I look blue but I am red. What am I?
Blood can make you feel hot with anger or run cold with fear, and it looks blue through your skin even though it is actually red.
I dance on one foot and know only one shape. Someone with the same name as me is very good with directions. What am I?
A compass needle balances and spins on a single point, always pointing north, and a person nicknamed 'Compass' would be famously good with directions.
I am fun and sad. I am fast and slow. I get louder and I get softer. And I am created by great geniuses. What am I?
Music can be joyful or somber, upbeat or slow, and rises and falls in volume, all crafted by musical geniuses.
Though learning has fed me, I know not a letter; I live among the books, yet am never the better. What am I?
A literal bookworm insect lives among and feeds on books, but never actually learns to read despite being surrounded by knowledge.
Where force can't get through, I with a gentle movement do. What am I?
A locked door can resist being forced open, but the correct key opens it with just a gentle turn.
I am the only organ that named myself. What am I?
The brain is responsible for thought and language, so it is credited with having invented the very word 'brain' to describe itself.
I am round. I have only one line. Circle is not my name indeed. What am I?
An oval is a rounded shape with a single continuous outline, but unlike a circle, it's elongated rather than perfectly round.
I'm really blue, but when you see me I'm red. You don't see me too often. I'm there for you if you're hurt, but I'm good for you. What am I?
Blood inside your veins looks bluish through the skin, but once it's exposed to air (when you're cut) it turns red; it helps heal you when you're hurt.
My teeth help me suck. What am I?
A vampire uses its pointed fangs (teeth) to bite and suck blood from its victims.
In prison I will be found, but I'll never be in court, unless there's more than one. What am I?
The letter S appears in "priSon" but not in "court" -- only in the plural "courtS," i.e. "unless there's more than one."
I am the ultimate killing machine, used not once but twice, I can be made by humans. What am I?
This refers to war broadly — humanity has waged World War I and World War II, both devastatingly deadly and entirely man-made.
I have strong affection for belly buttons. What am I?
Belly button lint famously accumulates in the navel, as if it had a special fondness for gathering there.
I can help you to mend. I hide my body but never my head. What am I?
A nail helps mend or join things, and once hammered in, its shaft disappears into the wood while its head stays visible.
I walk on 4 legs in the morning, 2 legs at noon, and 3 legs at night. What am I?
This is the classic Riddle of the Sphinx: a human crawls on four limbs as an infant, walks on two legs as an adult, and uses a cane as a third "leg" in old age.
I am a piece of paper that takes most people 3 or 4 years to get. What am I?
A diploma is the official paper awarded after completing several years of schooling, such as a college degree.
I have arms but cannot carry a thing. But wave at me and I wave back at you. What am I?
A clock's hands wave around its face but can't grip anything, and if you 'wave' at a clock's swinging pendulum, it seems to sway back.
I give life for my own, have a beginning, but my end is unknown. What am I?
The sun sustains all life on Earth and had a definite beginning, but exactly how or when it will end is beyond ordinary human knowledge.
I am black and white. I have strings, I have keys. I make sound without my lips. I make dough with no flour. What am I?
A piano is black and white, has strings inside struck by hammers from its keys, and 'makes dough' is slang for earning money — a piano can be quite lucrative to play or sell.
I am carried by mad animals. What am I?
Rabies is a disease transmitted through the bite of an infected ('mad') animal.
You used to come to me for all sorts of information and knowledge before internet was born. What am I?
A public library was the traditional destination for research and information before the internet made searching instant.
I am commonly abbreviated to H. What am I?
Hydrogen is the element universally abbreviated with the single letter H on the periodic table.
I hold two people together but touch only one. What am I?
A wedding ring physically touches only the finger of the person wearing it, yet it symbolically binds two people together in marriage.
In my life I must bare, my bloodline I must share. What am I?
A sibling shares a portion of your family bloodline throughout life, whether you like it or not.
Skirts for men. What am I?
A kilt is a traditional pleated garment, essentially a men's skirt, worn especially in Scottish culture.
The only amusing part of the body. What am I?
The 'funny bone' is the informal name for a spot on the elbow that causes a tingling sensation when bumped, punning on 'funny.'
I direct you from outer space. What am I?
GPS uses satellites orbiting in outer space to calculate and guide your location and route on Earth.
I am everywhere but cannot be seen, captured or held, only heard. What am I?
A voice can be heard from anywhere but has no physical form that can be seen, touched, or captured.
I have three eyes and only one leg. Obey me or you will be sorry. What am I?
A traffic light has three colored 'eyes' (red, yellow, green) mounted on a single pole, and drivers must obey it or risk a ticket or accident.
I do not have eyes but I once could see. I used to have thoughts but now I'm empty. What am I?
A skull no longer has functioning eyes or a brain inside it, even though it once housed both when the person was alive.
I'm an old relative who's hands can't hold anything and eyes can't see anything. What am I?
A grandfather clock is an old, tall piece of furniture whose clock 'hands' are just pointers (they can't grip anything) and whose painted clock 'face' has no real eyes.
I am clean when I'm black, dirty when I'm white. What am I?
A chalkboard looks "clean" when its black surface is bare, and "dirty" once covered in white chalk dust -- the reverse logic of the blackboard riddle earlier in this set.
Born in a shell I adorn your neck. What am I?
A pearl forms inside an oyster shell and is commonly strung into a necklace worn around the neck.
You see me a lot, especially at night. I protect something special. Many shut me in fright. What am I?
An eyelid appears constantly (blinking) especially at night when tired, and closing it — 'shutting' it in fright — protects the eye beneath.
I do not contain flesh, feather, or scales; yet I have fingers and thumbs. What am I?
A glove is shaped with 'fingers' and a 'thumb' for a hand to slip into, yet it's made of fabric or leather, not any living creature.
I am weightless, but you can see me. Put me in a bucket, and I'll make it lighter. What am I?
A hole has no weight or mass of its own, but if you dig a hole in a bucket of sand or dirt, you'll have less material — and therefore a lighter bucket.
I can swim but never get wet. I can run but never get tired. I follow you everywhere but never say a word. What am I?
A shadow can seem to swim or run alongside you and follows everywhere you go, but it's silent and never actually gets wet or tired.
I make noise yet you don't see me make it. I alarm for good yet sometimes for worse. I have a companion. What am I?
Thunder is heard, not seen, can signal danger (a storm) or simply nature putting on a show, and it always follows its 'companion,' lightning.
I provide cover for games of footsie and tax-free wages. What am I?
Games of footsie happen secretly under a restaurant table, and cash tips slipped under the table often go unreported to the tax collector.
I have got three eyes and all are in a straight line. When my red eyes opens, everything freezes. What am I?
A standard traffic light has three lamp 'eyes' lined up vertically, and everyone comes to a stop the instant its red light switches on.
Score in end zones. What am I?
In American football, players score points by carrying or catching the ball in the opposing end zone for a touchdown.
My first half means container. Not a lot of people understand my language. What am I?
Binary starts with 'bin,' meaning a storage container, and its strings of 1s and 0s are a 'language' only computers and specialists truly understand.
I crushed on Wendy Darling. What am I?
In J.M. Barrie's story, Peter Pan is the boy who has feelings for Wendy Darling and flies her to Neverland.
I am a place with substance and story, where many masquerade to their glory. What am I?
A stage is where actors 'masquerade' as other people, putting on a story for the glory of performance.
I make a living following the wealthy and beautiful. What am I?
A paparazzo makes a living photographing and chasing after celebrities and other wealthy, famous people.
I am the best thing that can happen after a stick hits a ball. What am I?
In baseball, hitting the ball hard enough to circle all the bases in one play is a home run -- often considered the best possible outcome of an at-bat.
I am three simple words, everyone wants to hear. Three simple words, such simple words, and yet... life changing... What am I?
'I love you' is famously three short words that people long to hear and that can change the course of a relationship.
There are four of us, but it seems like everyone loves spades the most. What am I?
A standard deck has four aces, one per suit, but the ace of spades is traditionally the most iconic and prized of the four.
I am a mother from a family of eight. Spins around all day despite my weight. Had a ninth sibling before finding out its fake. What am I?
Earth is one of eight planets orbiting the sun, spins on its axis daily, and once had a supposed 'ninth sibling,' Pluto, until it was reclassified as a dwarf planet.
With four oars it swims but it is always at home. Its back is like armor, tougher than chrome. What am I?
A turtle 'swims' using its four flippers ('oars'), and its hard shell acts like armor that's always right there on its back — its 'home.'
I won't break if you throw me off from the highest building but I will break if you place me in the ocean. What am I?
A tissue is so light that dropping it from a great height doesn't damage it, but placing it in water, like the ocean, quickly dissolves and breaks it apart.
I can be used to type and point you see. But don't forget, you can count on me. What am I?
Fingers are used to type on a keyboard, point at things, and count — you can literally 'count on your fingers.'
If you held me for too long, you would die. What am I?
Holding your breath for an extended period deprives your body of oxygen, which would eventually be fatal.
I am needed for most animals and hardcover books. What am I?
Vertebrate animals need a spine (backbone) for support, and hardcover books have a spine that holds the pages together.
I get wet when drying. I get dirty when wiping. What am I?
A towel becomes damp while drying someone off, and it picks up grime while being used to wipe something clean.
As your ideas grow, I shrink. What am I?
A pencil physically gets shorter (from sharpening and writing) the more ideas and words you put down on paper.
I flow from the mouth of Homer when he sees doughnuts. What am I?
The name Homer Simpson is famous for drooling over doughnuts, making 'drool' flow from his mouth at the sight of one.