ARMiller's Riddles

Some of the riddles on this page are familiar from our childhood and many have appeared on the Internet. The riddles are easier at the beginning and get more challenging as you go down the page. Hold your mouse pointer over the paw print for an answer. See also: Sayings.

Railroad Crossing, look out for the cars. Can you spell that, without any R's? That

What's black and white and red all over? A newspaper (sorry, that should be read all over)

What has four wheels and flies? A garbage truck

What time is it when the clock strikes 13? Time to get the clock fixed

When is a door not a door? When it's a-jar

When is a baby not a baby? When it's a little cross

When is a dog's tail not a tail? When it's a wag'n

What four-legged animal can jump higher than a house? Any animal; a house can't jump.

What has taken before you can get it? Your picture

What gets harder to catch the faster you run? Your breath

What has a skin and more eyes than one? It's very nice when it is done. A potato

What's the only day of the week that doesn't end with the letter "y"? Tomorrow

How many animals did Moses take on his ark? None, Noah built the ark

What is the worst vegetable to have on a ship? A leek (leak)

What has a face and two hands but no fingers? A clock

What has a neck without a head and two arms without hands? A shirt

How can you catch a unique rabbit? You neak up on it

How can you catch a tame rabbit? The tame way

What can hold water even though it has holes? A sponge

What word is usually pronounced incorrectly?

From what word can you take the whole and still leave some? Wholesome

How do you make "one" disappear? Add a g to it and it's gone

What English word is the same when spelled forward or backward or turned upside down? NOON

When are eyes not eyes? When the wind makes them water

What side of a cat has the most hair? The outside

What has eyes but can't see, a tongue but can't talk, and a soul but can never find love? A shoe

What has four eyes and runs south? The Mississippi River

If you can buy 1 for $1, 14 for $2, and 145 for $3, what are you buying? House numbers

What's wide at the bottom, narrow at the top, and has ears? A mountain (with mountaineers)

How many bricks does it take to complete a brick building? One

Captain Kirk of Star Trek has the usual left ear and right ear, but he also has a third ear. What is his third ear called? The final front ear (frontier)

A black dog is sleeping in the middle of a black road that has no streetlights and there is no moon. A car coming down the road with its lights off steers around the dog. How did the driver know the dog was there? It was daytime

What has a foot on each side and one in the middle? A yardstick

When a carpenter starts a new house, where does she strike the first nail? On the head

What always was, yet I can never be? Yesterday

Where is there is no south, west, nor east, and weather not fit for man or beast? The south pole

What kind of nut has no shell? A doughnut

What kind of bow can't be untied? A rainbow

I start with T, I end with T, and my inside is full of T. What am I? A teapot

Pronounced as one letter, but written with three,

Two letters there are, and two only in me.

I'm double, I'm single, I'm found in blue and gray.

Read from both ends, the same either way.

Whatever can I be? Eye

Play my music, if you dare. Turn my crank, although I'm square.

Stand back, or get a scare, when you see my surprising glare.

What am I? A Jack-in-the-box

Where does yesterday always follow today? In the dictionary

I'm big, I'm comfortable, but most of all I'm oh, so lazy. I have two arms, but only one foot. What am I? A Lazyboy recliner

The strangest creature you'll ever find has two eyes in front and a hundred behind. A peacock

What do you destroy when speak its name? Silence

Flat as a leaf, round as a ring;

Has two eyes, can't see a thing.

What is it? A button

If you take two apples from three apples, how many do you have? You have 2 apples, the two you took.

Which is correct, "The yolk of the egg are white" or "The yolk of the egg is white"? Neither. The yolk of an egg is yellow

What travels around the world but stays in one corner? A stamp

What starts with "P", ends with "E", and has many letters? Post office

What has cities, but no houses; forests, but no trees; and water, but no fish? A map

What brightens your day when it's dark, although it's usually in the shade? A lamp

Take away my first letter, I remain the same.

Take away my last letter, I remain the same.

Take away all my letters, I still remain the same.

What am I? Mailman, mailbox, or post office

What word starts with "E", ends with "E" but only has one letter? It is not the letter E. Envelope

Open me, and you can't see me without a mirror. Close me and you can't see me at all. What am I? Eyes

A beggar's brother died, but the man who died had no brother. How could that be? The beggar was his sister

What has to be broken before it can be used? An egg

What can be driven although it doesn't have wheels, sliced but stays whole? A golf ball

One falls but doesn't break. The other breaks but doesn't fall. What are they? Night and day

Rock and roll, rock and roll. What rocks but does not roll? A rocking chair

How many months have 28 days? All of them

What symbol can be put between 2 and 3 to make the result greater than 2 but less than 3? A decimal point

Iron roof and glass walls, burns and burns but never falls. What is it? A lantern

Before Mount Everest was discovered, what was the highest mountain on Earth?

How much more are 1990 dollar bills worth than 1980 dollar bills? Ten dollars ($1990 - $1980)

What can go up a chimney down, but can't go down a chimney up? An umbrella

How many three-cent stamps are there in a dozen? Twelve

Starting with zero, what is the first whole number to contain the letter "a" in its spelling? One thousand

A father and his son, who are injured in a car accident, are rushed to two different hospitals. The boy needs an operation, but the doctor says "I can't operate on this boy, he's my son". How can this be? The doctor is the boy's mother

Tear one off and scratch its head, what once was red is black instead. What is it? A paper match

How Long is a Chinese name. Hao Long means good dragon in Mandrin

You can hold it but you can't touch it. What is it? Your breath

Water, water everywhere. There is one state that has no water. Can you name it? The solid state

What's Irish and stays out all night? Paddy O'Furniture

If you feed it, it lives. If you give it water it dies. What is it? Fire

You throw away the outside, then cook the inside. Next, you eat the outside and throw away the inside. What is it? An ear of corn

I float on water. Back to front I am the same. Come to think of it so is my name. Kayak

They're up near the sky, on something very tall,

Sometimes they die, only then do they fall. What are they? Leaves

What can run but never walks, has a mouth but never talks,

has a bed but never sleeps, has a head but never weeps? A river

Voiceless it cries, wingless it flutters,

toothless it bites, and mouthless it mutters. The wind

What is the longest word in the English language? Smiles, because there's a mile between the first letters

What wears a coat in the winter and pants in the summer? A dog

What's thrown out when you want to use it, but taken back in when you don't want to use it? A boat anchor

What lies down when you stand up and stands up when you lie down? Your feet

What sits down going up and stands up going down? A skier

A colored ring in a sea of white. In the midst of darkness goes the light. What is it? The eye

If a bottle with its cork costs $1.10, and the bottle costs a dollar more than the cork, how much is the cork? Five cents

What is it that you never want to have, but if you get it, you don't want to lose it? A lawsuit

Rearrange the letters in NEW DOOR to make one word.

What lies on the ground, 100 feet in the air? A dead centipede

What gets wetter as it dries? A towel

What's open when it's closed and closed when it's open? A drawbridge

What's white when dirty but black when clean? A chalkboard

What has more rings than a jewelry store and spends most of the time in church but it can't pray? A bell

If it's walking it must be running but if it's running it must be walking. What is it? An android

When do you go on red, and stop on green? Eating a watermelon

What's lower with head but higher without? A pillow or a glass of beer

What stands on one leg with its heart in its head? An artichoke or cabbage

What can go up a hill faster than down? Fire

You answer me, although I never ask you questions. What am I? A telephone

What gets larger, the more you take away? A hole

What grows up while growing down? A goose

What grows larger, as it falls? A snowflake

What is put on the table and cut, but never eaten? A deck of cards

Where does love always mean nothing? On a tennis court

What goes through a door but never goes in and never comes out? A keyhole

I have keys that open no locks,

I have space, but there is no room,

You can enter, but you can't go in.

What am I? A computer keyboard

In my crazy existence, divorce comes before marriage, children before parents, baptism before birth, and death before life. What am I? A dictionary

How many birthdays does the average person have? One, because we are only born once.
We shorten anniversary of birthday to just birthday.

I can sizzle like bacon; I am made with an egg,

I have plenty of backbone, but lack a good leg.

I peel layers like onions, but still remain whole,

I can be long, like a flagpole, yet fit in a hole.

What am I? A snake

I live above a star, and yet I never burn;

I have eleven neighbors, and yet none of them turn;

I am visited in sequence, first, last or in between;

PRS are my initials, now tell me what I mean. The 7 button on a telephone keypad

The first man made it but never kept it.

The second man bought it but never used it.

The third man used it but never saw it.

What is it? A coffin

What has 6 faces and 21 eyes? A die

A cowboy rode into town on Friday, stayed three days, and then left on Friday. How is this possible? His horse is named Friday

A woman in New York marries seven men without getting a divorce. None of the men die, all of the marriages are legal, and she has not committed any crime. How can this be? She is a minister

What has two strong backbones and thousands of ribs? Railroad tracks

I am a fire's best friend. When fat, my body fills with wind. When pushed to thin, through my nose I blow. Then you can watch the embers glow. What am I? Bellows

To enter you need a key, but there is no keyhole. What is it? A computer

A man running home sees another man with a mask waiting for him there. He looks at the other man's hands and then quickly turns around and runs the other way. What is happening? They are playing baseball

There is a town where the barber shaves all those who do not shave themselves. Who shaves the barber? No one, because the barber is a woman

They have no flesh, feathers, scales, or bone; but they do have fingers and thumbs of their own. What are they? Gloves

While walking through a field of wheat,

I picked up something nice to eat.

Not fish, flesh, feather, or bone,

I kept it 'till it walked alone.

What was it? An egg

Many white horses meet on a red hill,

They meet here to clash, but mean no ill will.

Here there are crowns, but no kings to be seen.

Silver treasure is present, but without the queen.

Where am I? In a mouth with teeth

Alive without breath,

As cold as death;

Never thirsty, ever drinking,

All in mail never clinking.

What is it? A fish (Gollum's Riddle in the Hobbit, Chapter 5)

Two sisters are we, one dark and one fair.

In twin towers dwelling, we're quite the pair.

One from land, and one from sea.

Tell us truly, who are we? Pepper and salt

Jim pulls his car up to a popular hotel, but upon his arrival he realizes that he is bankrupt. What's going on? The game of Monopoly

They call me a man, but I'll never have a wife.

I was given a body, but not a life.

They made me a mouth, but didn't give me breath.

Water gives me life, but the sun brings me death.

What am I? A snowman

I am a basket case, conversing with clouds. My insides are toasty warm, and my multicolored coat keeps me so. What am I? A hot-air balloon

Tom's mother has three children. One is named Penny, the second is named Nickel. What is the third child's name? Tom

If a farmer had fourteen sheep and all but nine died, how many did she have left? Nine

What ship has two mates, but not a captain? Courtship

How many grooves in a phonograph record? Two, one on each side

What kinds of locks don't need a key? Just use your head, I think you'll see. Locks of hair

What's often held, yet rarely touched; always wet, yet never rusts; sometimes wagged and sometimes bit; to use it well, you must have wit? Your tongue

Two baseball teams played the usual nine innings. One team won by 3 runs, but not one man reached home plate. How is this possible? All the players were women.

Five little items of an everyday sort are all in order in a tennis court. What are they? The vowels A, E, I, O, U in A tEnnIs cOUrt

When I look up it's bright, but when I look down it's dark. What am I? A light switch

What two words contain the most letters? Post office

What five-letter word becomes shorter when you add two more letters? Short

There is one in every corner and two in every room. The letter O

What's in the middle of nowhere? The letter H

Forward I'm heavy, backward I'm not. Ton

What is the center of gravity? The letter V

What's large on Saturday and Sunday, small on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, and disappears on Monday and Friday? The letter S

What eight-letter word has kst in the middle, in the beginning, and at the end? Inkstand

What is one thing that all wise men, regardless of their religion or politics, agree is between heaven and earth? and

There is a word of letters three. Add two more, and fewer there will be. Few

A seed am I, three letters make my name; take away two and I still sound the same. What am I? Pea

What is round at the ends and high in the middle? OHIO

You'll find me in meadows, but not in fields.

You'll find me in mountains but not in hills.

You'll find me in the army, but not the navy.

You'll find me in Amsterdam and Milan, but not in New York, or Paris.

Who am I?

A puppy is one, but a dog is not.

A kitten is one, but a cat is not.

A cookie is one, but a cracker is not.

What is it? A word with double letters

I stand at the beginning of time, I complete the coming of night;

I occur twice in eternity, and I'm always within sight.

What am I? The letter T

The beginning of eternity, the end of time and space.

The beginning of every end, and the end of every place.

What am I? The letter E

In the middle of night, I surround the gong.

In the middle of sight, I end the song.

What am I? The letter G

What happens every second, minute, month, and century,

but not every hour, week, year, or decade? The letter N

Behind the Green Glass Door are kittens but not cats, puppies but not dogs,

teeth but not mouths, cotton but not shirts, and glass but not frames.

What's behind the Green Glass Door? Words with double letters as in Green Glass Door

What comes twice in a week, once in a year, but never in a day? The letter E

I'm in a rock but not a stone, in marrow but not in bone.

I'm in a bolster but not in a bed, not living and not dead.

I'm there when you rest, but I'm not in your bed.

What am I? The letter R

'Twas in heaven pronounced, and 'twas muttered in hell, an echo caught faintly the sound as it fell.

On the confines of earth 'twas permitted to rest, and the depth of the ocean its presence confessed.

What am I? The letter H

If Alaska = 2, Arkansas = 1, and Alabama = 3, what is Arizona? Arizona = 3, the syllable with the accent

Start with five hundred, and end with the same. Five in the middle is also seen.

First of all figures, first of all letters, take up stations between.

Join all together, and then you will bring,

Before you is the name of an eminent king. Who is the King? DAVID (in Roman numerals)

Never serious, having fun; Three dotted letters, all in a row.

Look for me high, but never low. Tell me the word that makes this riddle be so. Hijinx

As I was going to St. Ives,

I met a man with seven wives.

Each wife had seven sacks,

Each sack had seven cats,

Each cat had seven kits.

Kits, cats, sacks and wives,

How many were going to St. Ives? One, all the rest were coming back

How quickly can you find out what is unusual about this paragraph? It looks so ordinary that you would think that nothing was wrong with it at all and, in fact, nothing is. But it is unusual. Why? If you study it and think about it you may find out, but I am not going to assist you in any way. You must do it without coaching. No doubt, if you work at it for long, it will dawn on you. Who knows? Go to work and try your skill. Par is about half an hour. There is no e, the most common letter of the English alphabet

There is no e, the most common letter of the English alphabet

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