Riddles with answers

Riddles are the cheapest entertainment there is: no kit, no setup, and they work in a car, a queue or halfway through a birthday tea.

One hundred below, grouped easy to hard, each with the answer straight after it so nobody has to scroll to the bottom and spoil the lot.

Easy riddles to start with

• What has hands but cannot clap? - A clock.
• What has a neck but no head? - A bottle.
• What gets wetter the more it dries? - A towel.
• What has to be broken before you can use it? - An egg.
• What goes up but never comes down? - Your age.
• What has legs but cannot walk? - A table.
• What has one eye but cannot see? - A needle.
• What has teeth but cannot bite? - A comb.
• What runs but never walks? - A river.
• What has a face and two hands but no arms? - A clock.
• What can you catch but never throw? - A cold.
• What has a bottom at the top? - Your legs.
• What has keys but opens no locks? - A piano.
• What building has the most storeys? - The library.
• What is full of holes but still holds water? - A sponge.

Medium riddles

• I speak without a mouth and hear without ears. What am I? - An echo.
• The more you take, the more you leave behind. What am I? - Footsteps.
• I am always in front of you but cannot be seen. What am I? - The future.
• What can travel around the world while staying in a corner? - A stamp.
• What has many keys but cannot open a single door? - A keyboard.
• I have branches but no fruit, trunk or leaves. What am I? - A bank.
• What can fill a room but takes up no space? - Light.
• What breaks when you say its name? - Silence.
• What has cities but no houses, forests but no trees, and water but no fish? - A map.
• The more of it there is, the less you see. What is it? - Darkness.
• What goes through towns and hills but never moves? - A road.
• What has a thumb and four fingers but is not alive? - A glove.
• What can you keep after giving it to someone? - Your word.
• What is so fragile that saying its name breaks it? - Silence.
• What comes down but never goes up? - Rain.

Hard riddles for grown ups

• A man looks at a painting and says: brothers and sisters I have none, but that man's father is my father's son. Who is in the painting? - His son.
• I am not alive, but I grow. I do not have lungs, but I need air. What am I? - Fire.
• What can run but never walks, has a mouth but never talks, has a bed but never sleeps? - A river.
• The person who makes it sells it. The person who buys it never uses it. The person who uses it never knows. What is it? - A coffin.
• Forwards I am heavy, backwards I am not. What am I? - A ton.
• What disappears the moment you say its name? - Silence.
• I have lakes with no water, mountains with no stone and cities with no buildings. What am I? - A map.
• Two fathers and two sons went fishing and caught three fish, one each. How? - They were grandfather, father and son.
• What word becomes shorter when you add two letters to it? - Short.
• I am taken from a mine and shut in a wooden case, from which I am never released, yet I am used by almost everybody. What am I? - Pencil lead.
• A woman shoots her husband, holds him under water for five minutes, then hangs him. Ten minutes later they have dinner. How? - She is a photographer.
• What has thirteen hearts but no organs? - A pack of cards.
• Feed me and I live, give me a drink and I die. What am I? - Fire.
• What is always coming but never arrives? - Tomorrow.
• The more you take away from me, the bigger I get. What am I? - A hole.

Funny riddles

• Why did the biscuit go to the doctor? - It was feeling crumby.
• What kind of room has no doors or windows? - A mushroom.
• What do you call a fish with no eyes? - Fsh.
• What is brown and sticky? - A stick.
• Why can't your nose be twelve inches long? - Then it would be a foot.
• What gets bigger the more you take away? - A hole, and also your overdraft.
• What do you call cheese that isn't yours? - Nacho cheese.
• Why did the scarecrow get a promotion? - He was outstanding in his field.
• What has four wheels and flies? - A bin lorry.
• What did one wall say to the other? - Meet you at the corner.

Browse all funny cards

How to write it so it lands

• Read a riddle twice before taking guesses. Most of them hide the answer in one word.
• Give a one word clue after a minute rather than the answer - people stay in it far longer.
• Mix difficulties. A group that gets three in a row keeps playing; a group that gets none stops.

Where to shop next

• Riddles with answers
• Riddles for kids
• Hard riddles with answers
• Funny riddles
• Quiz questions and answers
• Pub quiz rounds
• Old fashioned party games
• Rainy day activities
• Family card games
• Nostalgic quiz questions
• Garden games for a party
• Party supplies
• Planning the party? Birthday party ideas
• How to make a balloon arch
• Photo booth prop ideas
• All guides

Frequently asked questions

What age are riddles good for?

The easy set works from around five or six. Medium riddles suit eight and up, and the hard ones are aimed at adults - they are the ones worth saving for a quiz night.

Can I use these in a quiz?

Yes. Pick ten, read them out twice, and give teams thirty seconds each. A riddle round of ten works well as the fourth round of a pub quiz when concentration is dipping.

What is the difference between a riddle and a lateral thinking puzzle?

A riddle has one right answer hidden in the wording. A lateral thinking puzzle needs questions asked back before the answer makes sense - like the photographer one in the hard set.