Death is an inevitable part of life that has fascinated humankind since the beginning of time. Riddles about death provoke deep thought and contemplation about mortality. Here are 73 thought-provoking riddles about death along with their answers.
General death riddles
1) I am lighter than a feather, yet the strongest man can’t hold me for longer than a minute. What am I?
Breath.
2) I make you weak at the worst of all times. I keep you safe, I keep you fine. I make your hands sweat, and your heart grow cold. I visit the weak, but seldom the bold. What am I?
Fear.
3) The more of them you have, the less you see. What are they?
Eyes.
4) We are one but easily shared. Once broken, we are no more. What are we?
Life.
5) I am strong as a rock, but a word can destroy me. What am I?
Silence.
Death riddles about time
6) I’m never early or late. I arrive precisely when I mean to. What am I?
Death.
7) I give all things form, but watch them die. What am I?
Time.
8) I am always on the move but going nowhere. What am I?
The time between birth and death.
9) I go on when all else ends. Who am I?
Time.
10) I devour all in the end. Who am I?
Time.
Afterlife riddles
11) A room full of departed souls, some standing still, others moving about. Which is which?
The living are moving, the dead are still.
12) What question can you never honestly answer yes to?
“Are you dead?”
13) What is broken without being held?
A promise to the dead.
14) I scrape and slide, entering rooms of the dead. They do not notice, but the living take heed. What am I?
Sunlight.
15) What gets wetter the more it dries?
A grave.
Murder mystery riddles
16) A man lies dead, shot in the chest. The gun and five bullets are beside him. However, he was not murdered. How did he die?
He committed suicide.
17) A hangman is condemned to death. The king said, “If you can come up with a puzzle the wisest man can’t solve, I’ll spare your life.” The hangman said, “I have one.” The king summons the wisest man and tells him the deal. He gives the wise man three chances. The hangman says, “The king is going to hang me tomorrow at noon and it’s a surprise hanging.” The wise man still cannot figure it out by noon the next day. How could the hanging be a surprise if the hangman knew when it would occur?
The hanging occurred at noon the day before the hangman said it would occur, surprising him.
18) A man was found dead with a cassette recorder in one hand and a gun in the other. When the police came in, they immediately pressed PLAY on the cassette. The man said “I have nothing else to live for. I can’t go on,” then the sound of a gunshot. How did he manage to commit suicide?
He recorded the message, then shot himself.
19) A dead body is found at the bottom of a multistory building. Seeing the position of the body, the police say it is a murder not suicide. How did they know?
Dead people can’t jump.
20) A man is lying dead in a field with a pack on his back. The contents have spilled. There is no weapon in sight and no footprints besides his own. What was in his pack and how did he die?
A parachute. His parachute failed to open.
Morbid riddles
21) People buy me to eat, but never eat me. What am I?
A coffin.
22) What has fingers and thumbs but no hands?
A pair of gloves.
23) What has a neck but no head?
A bottle.
24) What belongs to you but others use it more than you do?
Your name.
25) People make me, save me, change me, raise me. What am I?
Money.
Grim reaper riddles
26) I have a face but no body. I’m always with you but you rarely see me. I cannot speak but I communicate clearly. What am I?
Your reflection in the mirror.
27) I stalk the city streets in darkness, seeking those who’ve lost their way. With one swift motion I end their misery, my touch means death, there’s no reprieve. What am I?
A street lamp.
28) My blades cut deep and harvest all in their path. I care not for sorrow, just cold aftermath. What am I?
Time.
29) My victims never see me, though I’m under their gaze. Only those nearby witness the aftermath of my craze. What am I?
Lightning.
30) My kiss brings death, though you hardly feel my touch. Not by hate or anger do I take so much. What am I?
Old age.
Death’s door riddles
31) What word becomes shorter when you add two letters to it?
Short.
32) The maker doesn’t want it. The buyer doesn’t use it. The user doesn’t see it. What is it?
A coffin.
33) What happens when the clock strikes 13?
Time stops.
34) I have cities but no houses. I have mountains but no trees. I have water but no fish. What am I?
A map.
35) What’s broken every time it’s spoken?
Silence.
Grave riddles
36) What gets wetter as it dries?
A towel.
37) The eight of us go forth, not back. To protect our king from a foe’s attack. What are we?
Pawns in chess.
38) What goes up but never comes down?
Your age.
39) I can point in every direction, but I cannot reach anywhere by myself. What am I?
A finger.
40) I have a bed but I do not sleep. What am I?
A river.
Mortality riddles
41) The more you have of it, the less you see. What is it?
Darkness.
42) What falls but never breaks?
Night.
43) I am free for the taking through all of your life, though given but once at birth. I am less than nothing in weight, but will fell the strongest of you if held. What am I?
Breath.
44) I am seen in the water if seen in the sky. I am in the rainbow, a jay’s feather, and lapis lazuli eye. What am I?
Blue.
45) Feed me and I live, give me drink and I die. What am I?
Fire.
Life and death riddles
46) What is so delicate that saying its name breaks it?
Silence.
47) 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.
48) What goes up and down without moving?
Stairs.
49) What belongs to you, but others use it more than you do?
Your name.
50) The more you take, the more you leave behind. What are they?
Footsteps.
Heaven and hell riddles
51) What has a head, a tail, is brown, and has no legs?
A penny.
52) Forward I am heavy, but backward I am not. What am I?
The word “ton”.
53) What can travel around the world while staying in a corner?
A stamp.
54) What goes up but never comes down?
Your age.
55) What has many keys but can’t open a single lock?
A piano.
Deathly definitions
56) A half sister, a half brother, we have the same mother but not the same father. Who are we?
Hour and minute hands on a watch.
57) I have cities but no houses, forests but no trees, and water but no fish. What am I?
A map.
58) I’m tall when I’m young and short when I’m old. What am I?
A candle.
59) I am weightless but you can still see me. Put me in a bucket and I make it lighter. What am I?
A hole.
60) Though liquid, I’m never wet. Though solid, I always flow. Unending, I always go. What am I?
Time.
Meaning of death riddles
61) 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.
62) What is always coming but never arrives?
Tomorrow.
63) I am rarely touched but often held. If you have wit, you’ll use me well. What am I?
Your tongue.
64) The more places I be, the less you can see. What am I?
Darkness.
65) I dance in the sky, I squirt in your eye, If I get in your hair, I’ll cause you despair. What am I?
Rain.
Conclusion
Death is the most universal experience, yet it remains shrouded in mystery and enigma. These riddles poetically dance around the subject of mortality without definitive explanations. The boundaries between life and death often blur in intriguing ways. Riddles can help develop a contemplative mindset to prepare us for the inevitability of death. They teach us to approach our mortality with wisdom, curiosity and mindfulness.
