Riddles are a fun way to keep children engaged, but they can also be used as a learning tool. Whether it's to teach important concepts in maths, language, critical thinking, or even just to have fun, riddles are a great way to do it.
If you're looking to entertain your kids, or even yourself, look no further. We've compiled a list of the best riddles for kids with answers. So grab a pen and paper, and get ready to test your brainpower!
Contents
Easy Riddles for kids
These are "easy" riddles for kids. If you can solve them, that's great! If you can't, that's okay too. Just keep trying and you'll begin to see patterns that will help you solve the harder ones.
1) What has hands and a face, but can’t hold anything or smile?
A clock.
2) If you don’t keep me, I’ll break. What am I?
A promise.
3) I have a tail, a head, but no body. What am I?
A coin.
4) What five-letter word becomes shorter when you add two letters to it?
The word “short”.
5) What is full of holes but still holds water?
A sponge.
6) What gets bigger the more you take away?
A hole.
7) What’s black and white and read all over?
A newspaper.
8) What has many keys but can’t open any doors?
A piano.
9) What can fill a room but takes up no space?
Light.
10) What has teeth but cannot bite?
A comb.
11) What has four legs but cannot walk?
A chair.
12) You walk into a room that contains a match, a kerosene lamp, a candle, and a fireplace. What would you light first?
The match.
13) What has thirteen hearts, but no other organs?
A deck of cards.
14) What goes up but never comes down?
Age.
15) If you drop me, I’m sure to crack, but smile at me, and I’ll always smile back. What am I?
A mirror.
16) What building has the most stories in the world?
The library.
17) What two things can you never eat for breakfast?
Lunch and dinner.
18) The more you take, the more you leave behind. What are they?
Footsteps.
19) You’re running a race and at the very end, you pass the person in 2nd place. What place did you finish the race in?
You finished in 2nd place.
20) There’s only one word spelled wrong in the dictionary. What is it?
The word “wrong.” It’s the only word that’s spelled W-R-O-N-G.
21) Kate’s mother has three children. Their names are Snap, Crackle, and … ?
Kate.
22) What’s the capital of France?
The letter “F” — It’s the only capital letter in France.
Hard Riddles for kids
23) You’ll find me in Mercury, Earth, Mars and Jupiter, but not in Venus or Neptune. What am I?
The letter “R”.
24) If I have it, I don’t share it. If I share it, I don’t have it. What is it?
A secret.
25) What goes away as soon as you talk about it?
Silence.
26) I am not alive, but I grow; I don’t have lungs, but I need air; I don’t have a mouth, but water kills me. What am I?
Fire.
27) A girl has as many brothers as sisters, but each brother has only half as many brothers as sisters. How many brothers and sisters are there in the family?
Four sisters and three brothers.
28) What is always in front of you but can’t be seen?
The future.
29) Two fathers and two sons are in a car, yet there are only three people in the car. How?
They are a grandfather, father and son.
30) Three doctors said that Bill was their brother. Bill says he has no brothers. How many brothers does Bill actually have?
None. He has three sisters.
31) Where can you find cities, towns, shops, and streets but no people?
A map.
32) You see a boat filled with people, yet there isn’t a single person on board. How is that possible?
All the people on the boat are married.
33) What goes through cities and fields, but never moves?
A road.
34) What can run but never walks, has a mouth but never talks, has a head but never weeps, has a bed but never sleeps?
A river.
35) The only place in the world where today comes before yesterday. Where is it?
The dictionary.
36) The first two letters signify a male, the first three letters signify a female, the first four letters signify a great, while the entire world signifies a great woman. What is the word?
Heroine.
37) What word begins and ends with E but only has one letter?
Envelope.
Math Riddles for kids
38) Mary has four daughters, and each of her daughters has a brother—how many children does Mary have?
Five, each daughter has the same brother.
39) If there are three apples and you take away two, how many apples do you have?
You have two apples. You took away two apples and left one in the basket.
40) When Felix was 8, his brother was half his age. Now, Felix is 14. How old is his brother?
His brother is 10.
41) Priya has a very big family. She has 20 aunts, 20 uncles and 50 cousins. Each of her cousins has an aunt who is not Priya's aunt. How is this possible?
Their aunt is Priya's mom.
42) I am an odd number. Take away a letter and I become even. What number am I?
Seven.
43) What 3 numbers give the same result when multiplied and added together?
1, 2, and 3 ( 1 + 2 + 3 = 6 and 1 x 2 x 3 = 6).
44) There were two ducks in front of a duck, two ducks behind a duck, and one duck in the middle. How many ducks were there in total?
Three.
45) When asked how old she was, Ivy replied, “In two years, I will be twice as old as I was five years ago.” How old is she?
She’s 12.
46) Peter was asked to paint the apartment number on plates for 100 apartments which means he will have to paint numbers 1 through 100. How many times will he paint the number 8?
20 times (8, 18, 28, 38, 48, 58, 68, 78, 80, 81, 82, 83, 84, 85, 86, 87, 88, 89, 98).
47) In another universe, half of 10 is 6. If the same proportion holds, then what is 1/6th of 30 in this other universe?
6.
48) What is the maximum possible number of times you can subtract number 5 from number 25?
Only once. When you subtract 5 from 25, it becomes the number 20, then 15, etc.
49) A cell phone and phone case cost $110 in total. The cell phone costs $100 more than the phone case. How much was the cell phone?
$105 (not $110).
50) When Jack was 6 years old, his little sister, Estelle, was half his age. If Jack is 40 years old today, how old is Estelle?
She is 37 years old.
51) If you multiply this number by any other number, the answer will always be the same. What number is this?
Zero.
52) My friend lives at the reverse of my house number. The difference between our house numbers ends in two. What are the lowest possible numbers of our house numbers?
The lowest possible numbers for the houses are 19 and 91. The difference is 72.
53) A duck was given $9, a spider was given $36, and a bee was given $27. Based on this information, how much money would be given to a cat?
$18 ($4.50 per leg).
54) I am a three-digit number. My tens digit is six more than my ones digit. My hundreds digit is eight less than my tens digit. What number am I?
193.
55) If seven people meet each other and each shake hands only once with each of the others, how many handshakes happened?
21.
56) A farmer has 18 sheep on his land. One day, a big storm hits, and all but nine run away. How many sheep does the farmer have left?
Nine. All but nine ran away.
57) Two hens can lay two eggs in two minutes. If this is the maximum speed possible, what is the total number of hen needed to get 500 eggs in 500 minutes?
2 hens.
58) Danny has 5 sons. Each of his sons has a sister. If so, how many children does Danny have?
Six. All of the sons have the same sister.
59) Using only addition, add eight 8s to get the number 1,000.
888 + 88 + 8 + 8 + 8 = 1,000.
Funny Riddles for kids
60) If a rooster sits on a roof facing north, which way will the egg roll?
Roosters don't lay eggs.
61) Mr. Blue lives in the blue house. Mrs. Yellow lives in the yellow house. Mr. Orange lives in the orange house. Who lives in the White House?
The president.
62) What did the triangle say to the circle?
You’re pointless.
63) What fruit can you never cheer up?
A blueberry.
64) There's a one-story house in which everything is yellow. Yellow walls, yellow doors, yellow furniture. What colour are the stairs?
There aren't any — it's a one-story house.
65) What has a thumb and four fingers but is not a hand?
A glove.
66) What weighs more, a tonne of iron or a tonne of feathers?
Both would weigh the same.
67) I have no legs. I will never walk but always run. What am I?
A river.
68) How far can a Mrs. bear walk into the woods?
Halfway. After that, she's walking out of the woods.
69) What has a tongue but cannot talk?
A shoe.
70) If you threw a yellow stone into a blue sea, what would it become?
Wet.
71) Which month has 28 days in it?
All of them, of course.
72) What has many rings, but no fingers?
A telephone.
73) Where is the zombie's favourite room in the house?
The living room.
7 Benefits of Riddles for Kids
Riddles are not only entertaining, but they can also have some amazing cognitive benefits. The best riddles for kids are those that get them to think laterally, challenge them to come up with creative solutions, and help them flex their problem-solving muscles. We look at the top 7 reasons why riddles are such a valuable learning tool, both at home and in the classroom.
1. Improves problem-solving skills
One of the best benefits of riddles for kids is that they can help to improve maths problem-solving strategies. As your child solves each riddle, they will need to think critically in order to come up with the correct answer. Brain teasers help kids learn how to dismantle a problem and think of multiple ways to solve it.
2. Boosts creativity
Riddles can also help to boost creativity. In order to solve many riddles, kids will need to think outside the box and brainstorm creative solutions. It requires you to think of the answer in a way that is not always obvious.
Learning to see things from different perspectives can also help kids to be more open-minded and tolerant of others, which are essential life skills.
3. Develops memory and concentration
In order to solve most riddles, kids will need to remember information and details, thereby improving their working memory. Additionally, the more riddles kids solve, the better they will become at concentrating for extended periods of time. This can be especially useful for kids with short attention and those who struggle with staying focused.
4. Teaches critical thinking
Riddles require kids to analyse information and think logically in order to arrive at an answer. You need to be able to understand the question, recall facts and look for clues in order to find a solution. Logical reasoning is at the core of this process. You begin to understand complex ideas, reason through arguments, draw conclusions based on evidence and make decisions with confidence.
5. Encourages communication and teamwork
Although most riddles can be solved by an individual, some are better suited for a group. In order to solve these types of riddles, kids will need to communicate and work together as a team. Even working on riddles with just one other person can help kids to develop vital communication skills. They encourage kids to share ideas, listen to others, and compromise when necessary.
6. Improves reading comprehension and vocabulary
Many riddles are designed to be read aloud. This helps to improve reading comprehension by giving kids practice with different types of words, sentence structures, and story plots.
Hearing the riddle being read can also help with understanding and processing information. They will also be exposed to new words, helping them expand their vocabulary.
7. Builds patience and persistence
Solving riddles teaches kids the importance of being patient and persistent. They often can be difficult to solve, but with perseverance, most can be figured out. Teaching children to stick with it, even when they feel frustrated, fosters grit and determination.
In our maths tutoring sessions, we often work through tricky worded problems with our students to help them see that being patient and taking their time can result in a successful outcome.
How to create your own riddle
Creating your own riddles is a great way to challenge yourself and others. We break down the process into three simple steps. Give it a try today!
1. Create an answer
The first step is to come up with an answer to your riddle. This could be an object, a person, a place, or anything else you can think of. Once you have your answer in mind, you can move on to the next step.
2. Choose your clue(s)
Next, you will need to create a clue that will help people to guess the answer to your riddle. This clue should be something that is related to the answer, but not too obvious. For example, if the answer to your riddle is “a bat”, rather than a straightforward clue like “I fly and hang upside down”, you could try something more creative like "Which animal is best at hitting a ball?".
Think of using similes, metaphors, and other figures of speech to make your clue more interesting. Move beyond the literal and get those creative juices flowing!
3. Write your riddle
Now that you have both the answer and the clue, it’s time to put them together to create your riddle. Make sure to keep your riddle short and sweet – the best riddles are usually no more than a few sentences long. They're difficult to answer—but not impossible. Be sure to share it with your friends and family to see if they can solve it. Have fun and happy riddling!
