New Riddles With Answers - page 7 of 53
Bill's mom has four kids: Mary, John, and Alice. What is the name of her fourth child?
The riddle opens by naming 'Bill's mom,' so Bill himself is the fourth, unnamed child.
Makeup for fingertips. What am I?
Nail polish is cosmetic color applied to the fingernails at the tips of your fingers.
A beautiful succession of sounds.
A pleasing sequence of sounds arranged together is, broadly, music.
A red drum which sounds without being touched, and grows silent when it is touched.
The heart is poetically called a 'red drum' because it beats (sounds) entirely on its own, and stopping it by touch would silence it forever.
The celebrities of high school were part of this crowd.
High school's most well-known and socially prominent students are often called 'the popular crowd.'
What is flat, usually square, and made from trees but isn't wood?
Paper is made from wood pulp (trees) but is no longer considered 'wood' itself once processed.
Without feather or wing I fly, but you'll know what I am when I hover nearby. What am I?
A helicopter has no feathers or wings, yet it flies and is easily recognized by the sound of it hovering nearby.
I'll shout til you wake or sing you to sleep. I'll talk to you but you're crazy if you talk back. What am I?
A radio can blast an alarm to wake you, play soothing songs at night, and 'talks' to you, but it can't actually hear you talk back.
It is known as the best real estate for toys.
A dollhouse is literally a miniature house -- prime 'real estate' for toy dolls and figures.
What Botox will do to your expression.
Botox injections work by temporarily paralyzing facial muscles, which stops them from moving expressively.
It is the most common hour to have a gunfight in a western scene.
High noon is the classic hour for a dramatic showdown in Western movies (as in the film 'High Noon').
They say each one is totally unique.
It's said that no two snowflakes are exactly alike, making each one totally unique.
Securing your documents is easy with these trusty metal objects.
Staples are small metal fasteners that securely bind pages of documents together.
What is something that can go up quite easily, but is not as easy to bring back down?
Gaining weight happens easily, but losing it again takes much more effort.
I am the noise Santa's reindeer make. What am I?
The bells on Santa's reindeer harness make a jingling sound, as in the song 'Jingle Bells.'
What has a brown coat, a long tail, and lives in house or shed but is most active while you're in bed?
A house mouse has brown fur and a long tail, and is nocturnal, scurrying around most while people sleep.
When I type I tap these on the keys.
Typing on a keyboard involves tapping the keys with your fingertips.
Cut the wrong wire and it goes boom.
In movies, defusing a bomb often involves cutting the correct wire -- cut the wrong one, and it explodes.
During the 1800's these turned women into hourglasses and are becoming more popular again these days.
Corsets cinched women's waists to create an hourglass figure and have seen a modern fashion resurgence.
Racers are asked to start these at NASCAR events.
The famous NASCAR command is 'Gentlemen, start your engines!'
A famous home without color and with wings.
The White House is famously white (a color often described as an absence of color) and has an East Wing and West Wing.
A metal snake that runs on tracks.
A train, with its long chain of connected cars, resembles a metal snake slithering along its tracks.
Though I have neither legs nor feet, my use is for to go; although I cannot speak, I tell what others want to know.
A wristwatch has no legs or feet of its own, but it lets you 'go' by keeping time, silently telling people what they want to know.
What common English verb becomes its own past tense by rearranging its letters?
'Eat' rearranged becomes 'ate' -- its own past-tense form, made from the same letters.
Without this, H2O would just be 2O.
Water's chemical formula, H2O, needs the 'H' for hydrogen -- remove it and only the two oxygen atoms remain.
What has only two words, but thousands of letters?
This is a wordplay riddle: a post office handles thousands of pieces of mail (letters), even though its own name is only two words.
I am a time for gathering crops. Remove the first three letters and I become an object you can wear. What am I?
'Harvest' is the crop-gathering season, and dropping its first three letters ('har') leaves 'vest,' a piece of clothing.
This could make wooden boy's noses grow.
This refers to Pinocchio, whose wooden nose grew whenever he told a lie -- a 'fib.' (The source prints this answer as 'fb,' an OCR artifact from the fi-ligature dropping its 'i'; corrected here to 'fib.')
What calls for help, when written in capital letters, is the same forwards, backwards and upside down?
SOS is the universal distress signal, and in capital letters it reads identically forwards, backwards, and even upside down.
The moon is my father. The sea is my mother. I have a million brothers. I die when I reach land.
Ocean waves are driven by the moon's gravitational pull and formed by the sea, travel in countless numbers, and dissolve ('die') when they crash onto the shore.
The most foreign visitor you could imagine.
An alien from another planet would be the most 'foreign' visitor possible, coming from beyond Earth itself.
This is a Japanese food consisting of cooked vinegared rice combined with other ingredients, usually raw fish or other seafood.
This is the standard definition of sushi, seasoned rice paired with fish or other ingredients.
This patch of land stands alone.
An island is a piece of land completely surrounded by water, standing apart from other land.
He is known to commit a friendly home invasion one night a year, never taking but always leaving stuff behind.
Santa Claus is said to sneak into homes every Christmas Eve to leave presents, never taking anything.
My second is performed by my first, and it is thought a thief by the marks of my whole might be caught.
The 'foot' (first part) performs the 'step' (second part), and the footsteps left behind can help catch a thief.
Hurts when it breaks and if it stops, you are dead.
A broken heart causes emotional pain, and if your actual heart stops beating, you die.
A squiggly line tells you when you've done it wrong.
A word-processor's spell checker underlines misspelled words with a squiggly red or colored line.
What body part is pronounced as one letter but written with three, only two different letters are used?
'Eye' is pronounced like the letter I, but is spelled with three letters using only two distinct ones, E and Y.
Describes universities like Harvard and can be poisonous.
Harvard belongs to the 'Ivy League,' and poison ivy is a well-known toxic plant -- both share the name ivy.
Different lights do make me strange, thus into different sizes I will change.
The eye's pupil dilates and constricts (changes size) depending on the brightness of the light.
Godzilla calls this place home.
Godzilla originates from Japanese cinema and is depicted as emerging from and rampaging through Japan.
You speak this when you are being sincere.
Speaking sincerely means telling the truth.
What can be filled with empty hands?
A glove appears 'filled' with the shape of a hand once worn, even though the hand inside is empty of anything else.
War fought with pieces on a board.
Chess is a strategy game often described as a symbolic 'war' fought with pieces on a checkered board.
Temporary evidence of where you've been strolling.
A footprint marks the ground briefly to show where you walked, until it fades or is washed away.
This is the drinkable phase of matter.
Of the states of matter, liquid is the one you can drink, like water or juice.
Gumby and yoga instructors have this in common.
The bendable clay character Gumby and skilled yoga instructors are both known for being extremely flexible.
What kind of shoes can you make out of banana peels?
It's a pun -- stepping on a banana peel makes you slip, so the shoes made from it are 'slippers.'
Possibly the only famous plumber who has the courage to ever rescue a princess.
Mario, the video game plumber, is famous for repeatedly rescuing Princess Peach.
If you can spot one of these eastern warriors, it means they're not doing their job right.
Ninjas are trained to be stealthy and unseen; if you spot one, they've failed at their job.
For all your post bubble-bath drying needs.
A towel is the go-to tool for drying off after a bath or shower.
Autumn leaves and bad bowlers wreak havoc on this.
Fallen leaves clog roof gutters, and bowlers with poor aim send their ball rolling into the bowling lane's gutter -- a double meaning of 'gutter.'
What types of words are these: madam, civic, eye, level?
Each of these words reads the same forwards and backwards, which is the definition of a palindrome.
The main difference between us and zombies.
Zombies are the undead, while living humans are, simply put, alive -- the difference is life itself.
Feared on the playground, he steals your lunch money and distributes wedgies.
A schoolyard bully is the classic figure who intimidates other kids, taking their lunch money and giving wedgies.
Retired people want these to be large and birds want them to hatch.
'Nest egg' means retirement savings for people, while birds want their actual eggs in a nest to hatch -- a pun connecting both meanings.
These make grown men dance in end zones.
Football players celebrate wildly, often dancing, after scoring a touchdown in the end zone.
A natural tattoo on babies.
A birthmark is a colored mark present on the skin from birth, like a tattoo the baby never chose.
If you are unsure how to use one then just ask a flight attendant.
Flight attendants demonstrate how to fasten a seat belt before every takeoff.
I have a metal roof and glass wall. I burn and burn but never fall. What am I?
A lantern has a metal top and glass sides that protect its flame, which burns steadily without falling over.
Kids hunt for them and adults make sure they are not all in one basket.
Kids hunt for eggs (like at Easter), and the idiom 'don't put all your eggs in one basket' warns adults against risky investing.
I have a tail. I can fly. I'm covered in colorful feathers. I can whistle and I can talk. What am I?
A parrot has a tail and colorful feathers, can fly, and famously can whistle and mimic human speech.
These are great, floaty fun until they explode and give you a little scare.
Balloons are fun to play with while floating, but popping unexpectedly can give you a startle.
Long and thin, red within, with a nail at the end.
A finger is long and thin, has blood ('red within'), and ends in a fingernail.
Each morning I appear to lie at your feet, all day I follow no matter how fast you run. Yet I nearly perish in the midday sun.
A shadow stretches long at sunrise, follows you all day, and shrinks to almost nothing when the sun is directly overhead at noon.
It's what light turns into in the night.
When light fades away at night, it is replaced by darkness.
Both cockroaches and illegal drug laboratories or syndicates do fear this.
'Raid' is a bug-spray brand roaches fear, and it's also the word for a police raid that drug labs and syndicates dread -- a pun on both meanings.
George J. Jetson and Neil A. Armstrong drove this to work.
Neil Armstrong traveled to the Moon in a spacecraft, and George Jetson (from the cartoon 'The Jetsons') traveled to work in his flying car -- both loosely grouped here under 'spaceship.'
I am the yellow hem of the sea's blue skirt.
The poetic image of a yellow border along the blue sea describes a sandy beach where land meets ocean.
Kids play it and Michelangelo sculpted with it.
Marbles are a children's game, and marble is also the stone Michelangelo carved his famous sculptures from -- same word, different meaning.
They're big and blue, and larger than seas.
Oceans are the largest bodies of water -- bigger than seas -- and are typically shown as blue on maps.
A person who chews the ends of their fingers.
Someone who chews their fingernails out of anxiety or habit is called a 'nail-biter.'
What is round, has a twin, and sees more than most?
An eye is round, comes as a matching pair (its 'twin'), and its job is to see -- often noticing more than people expect.
I'm a lion with a human head. Guess my Riddle or you'll be dead.
The Sphinx, from Greek mythology, has a lion's body and a human head, and famously killed those who failed to answer its riddle.
I am black as night but can be filled with light. Through me things can be seen, although it is a screen. What am I?
A TV screen looks black when off, lights up with images when on, and lets viewers watch programs through its screen.
I am soldier and I really hate one month. Which month I am talking about?
This is a pun: soldiers "march," so the month of March is jokingly what a soldier would "hate" doing constantly.
If you need a night out, call one of these over to take the little ones off your hands for a while.
A babysitter is hired to watch children so parents can go out for the evening.
Mobsters judge the quality of a vehicle by the size of this.
Mob movies often joke that a spacious trunk is valued by gangsters for its usefulness in disposing of bodies.
One who has offended the government and has been detained by it.
This describes a prisoner, someone jailed for breaking the law and offending governmental authority.
This would be a good place to find Can-Can girls and drunk Cowboys.
The Wild West saloon was the classic setting for cowboys drinking and Can-Can dancers performing.
The preferred color of carpet in this town is red.
Hollywood is famous for rolling out the red carpet for celebrities at movie premieres and award shows.
I'm a blended cold beverage made up of milk, ice cream and fruit. I bring all the boys to the yard.
This references the song lyric "My milkshake brings all the boys to the yard," describing a milk, ice cream, and fruit blended drink.
Thanks for such treasures as Mariachis, enchiladas and habanero!
Mariachi music, enchiladas, and habanero peppers are all iconic parts of Mexican culture and cuisine.
Very helpful if you intend to go gently down a river.
This references the song lyric "row, row, row your boat, gently down the stream," making a rowboat the helpful item.
Both punishment and sweet reward, It will befall both fool and lord. It is a spiritual scoreboard, Your every deed it does record.
Karma is believed to reward good deeds and punish bad ones equally, regardless of status, while tracking every action a person takes.
Mary's child slept in one of these.
The Nativity story describes Mary's baby, Jesus, being laid to sleep in a manger.
One more than a duet.
A duet has two members; adding one more makes a trio of three.
What is always coming every day, but never arrives until the next?
Tomorrow is always one day away; once it arrives, it simply becomes today, so "tomorrow" itself never truly arrives.
When someone uses this acronym, you know you've got to pick up the pace.
"ASAP" ("as soon as possible") signals urgency and that you need to hurry.
What is it that you must give before you can keep it.
"Give your word" means to make a promise, and afterward you're expected to "keep your word" by honoring it.
Santa's favorite entrance for home invasion.
Santa Claus is traditionally said to enter homes by sliding down the chimney.
I am a small paradise surrounded by dryness and heat. What am I?
An oasis is a lush, fertile spot with water and plants surrounded by an otherwise dry, hot desert.
If someone offers you one of these, they had a successful fishing trip or their band just broke up.
"Bass" is both a fish caught while fishing and the name for a bass guitarist, who might be "offered up" if a band splits and needs a replacement, or lets go.
It describes an era in history during which lights was hard to come by.
The Dark Ages get their name from being a period lacking in light, both literally (before electricity) and figuratively (limited historical records).
Mary's father has 4 daughters. Three are named Nana, Nene, and Nini. What is the fourth daughter's name?
The riddle is about Mary's father, so the fourth daughter is Mary herself, easy to miss because of the pattern set by the other three names.
I travel the world and I am drunk constantly. Who am I?
Water travels the globe through the water cycle and rivers and oceans, and is also constantly "drunk" (consumed) by people and animals everywhere.
Each of these ends in a kettle full of precious metal and the double variety is quite awesome.
Folklore says a pot (kettle) of gold sits at the end of every rainbow, and seeing a double rainbow is considered especially spectacular.
What flies forever, rests never?
Wind is constantly in motion across the globe and never truly stops blowing everywhere at once.
You can do this with your friends. You can do this with your nose. But don't do it with your friend's nose!
You can "pick" your friends (choose them) and pick your own nose, but picking someone else's nose would be rude and gross.
The edge of earth and bread.
The Earth's outer rocky layer and the outer edge of a loaf of bread are both called the crust.