Riddles aren’t just for cave-dwelling Gollums and Batman villains! Riddles are for anyone who wants to kick their brain out of routine thinking habits. And the best riddles are just fun word puzzles that challenge everyone to examine their assumptions while laughing at language itself. Naturally, not every riddle is an easy riddle, but most kids have a natural aptitude for divergent thinking and enthusiasm for play. Riddles are a fun brain exercise that doesn’t feel like homework. So, if you want to engage your kids’ natural problem-solving skills, but you don’t want to throw them into the riddle deep end, here are thiry-three of the best riddles — ranging from hard riddles to medium riddles, to easy riddles — that your kids can probably solve, along with a little laughter, too.
Fox in the Woods
Riddle: How far can a fox run into the woods?
Solution: Only halfway, otherwise it would be running out of the woods!
Odd Number
Riddle: I am an odd number. Take away a letter and I become even. What number am I?
Solution: Seven.
These Hands Can’t Clap
Riddle: What has hands but doesn’t clap?
Solution: A clock.
Houses Made of…
Riddle: If a red house is made of red bricks, and a yellow house is made of yellow bricks, what is a greenhouse made of?
Solution: Glass, all greenhouses are made of glass.
Break Before Using
Riddle: What has to be broken before you can use it?
Solution: An egg.
Numbers
Riddle: If two’s company, and three’s a crowd, what are four and five?
Solution: Nine!
Only Going Up
Riddle: What goes up but never comes back down?
Solution: Your age!
The Shorter Word
Riddle: What five-letter word becomes shorter when you add two letters to it?
Solution: Shorter. (Short + ‘er’)
Begins and Ends With T
Riddle: What begins with T, finishes with T, and has T in it?
Solution: A teapot.
Not Benjamin Button
Riddle: I’m tall when I’m young, and I’m short when I’m old, what am I?
Solution: A candle.
Spelled Wrong
Riddle: What word is spelled wrong in every dictionary?
Solution: Wrong.
The Long Line
Riddle: You draw a line. Without touching it, how do you make it a longer line?
Solution: Draw a short line next to it and now it’s the longer line.
Easy to Break
Riddle: What is so fragile that saying its name breaks it?
Solution: Silence.
One Letter and Starts With ‘E’
Riddle: What begins with an E but only has one letter?
Solution: An envelope.
How the Leopard Changed Spots
Riddle: How can a leopard change its spots?
Solution: By moving from one spot to another.
Easy in, Hard Out
Riddle: What is easy to get into but hard to get out of?
Solution: Trouble.
Dry Without an Umbrella
Riddle: If a brother, his sister, and their dog weren’t under an umbrella, why didn’t they get wet?
Solution: It wasn’t raining.
Snap, Crackle…
Riddle: David’s parents have three sons: Snap, Crackle and…?
Solution: David!
Brother of Daughters
Riddle: Mary has four daughters, and each of her daughters has a brother — how many children does Mary have?
Solution: Five, each daughter has the same brother.
Dinner
Riddle: You bought me for dinner but never eat me. What am I?
Solution: Cutlery.
Train Fatalities
Riddle: After a train crashed, every single person died. Who survived?
Solution: All of the couples.
Blind With Four Eyes
Riddle: What has four eyes but can’t see?
Solution: Mississippi.
Success Before Work
Riddle: Where does success come before work?
Solution: The dictionary.
Always on the Move in One Spot
Riddle: What travels around the world but stays in one spot?
Solution: A stamp.
The English Alphabet
Riddle: How many letters are there in the English alphabet?
Solution: 18: 3 in ‘the’, 7 in ‘English,’ and 8 in ‘alphabet.’
Twelve in Six Letters
Riddle: A word I know, six letters it contains, remove one letter and 12 remains, what is it?
Solution: Dozens.
Full of Holes, But Still Holds Water
Riddle: What is full of holes but still holds water?
Solution: A sponge.
Impossible to Say ‘Yes’ To
Riddle: What answer can you never answer yes to?
Solution: Are you asleep yet?
You Can Count on Us
Riddle: When things go wrong, what can you always count on?
Solution: Your fingers.
At the Start a Lummox
Riddle: Turn us on our backs and open up our stomachs, and you will be the wisest but at the start a lummox. What are we?
Solution: Books.
Looking Ahead
Riddle: What is always in front of you but can’t be seen?
solution: The future.
All Streets, No People
Riddle: Where can you find cities, towns, shops, and streets but no people?
Solution: A map.
A Zebra By Any Another Name
Riddle: What’s black and white and blue?
Solution: A sad zebra.
