Words can be tricky, mysterious things. A simple play on letters can turn an ordinary word into a brainteaser. Riddles that involve wordplay put your vocabulary skills to the test. Can you figure out the hidden meanings in these verbal puzzles? Read on for 91 riddles about words and their clever solutions.
Riddles about Homophones
Homophones are words that sound the same but have different meanings and spellings. These riddles use homophones to confuse and amuse.
1. What does a clock do when it’s hungry?
It goes back four seconds.
2. What do you call a funny mountain?
Hill-arious
3. I’m tall when I’m young, short when I’m old. What am I?
A candle.
4. What starts with a “t”, ends with a “t”, and has “t” in it?
A teapot.
5. What has a neck but no head?
A bottle.
6. What word looks the same backward and upside down?
SWIMS
7. What weighs more – a pound of bricks or a pound of feathers?
Neither, they both weigh a pound!
8. What has hands but can’t clap?
A clock.
9. What gets wetter the more it dries?
A towel.
10. What occurs once in a minute, twice in a moment, but never in a thousand years?
The letter M.
Riddles about Homographs
Homographs are words that are spelled the same way but have different meanings. See if you can solve the meaning of these homographic riddles.
11. When you see me, you might walk right by. Look again – I’ll make you cry!
An onion.
12. I have cities but no houses, forests but no trees, water but no fish. What am I?
A map.
13. What has a head and a tail but no body?
A coin.
14. You throw away the outside and cook the inside. Then you eat the outside and throw away the inside. What did you eat?
Corn on the cob.
15. What goes up and down stairs without moving?
The railing.
16. What has a ring but no finger?
A phone.
17. What has a neck but no head, two arms but no hands?
A shirt.
18. I am taken from a mine and shut up in a wooden case, from which I am never released, and yet I am used by almost everybody. What am I?
Lead in a pencil.
19. People buy me to eat, but never eat me. What am I?
A plate.
20. What goes up when rain comes down?
An umbrella.
Riddles about Homonyms
Homonyms words that sound alike and are spelled alike, but have different meanings. Try to solve the twin meaning of these homonymic riddles.
21. What is it that given one, you’ll have either two or none?
A choice.
22. What starts with “e”, ends with “e”, and only contains one letter?
An envelope.
23. Poor people have it. Rich people need it. If you eat it you die. What is it?
Nothing.
24. What occurs once in a minute, twice in a moment but never in one thousand years?
The letter M.
25. What belongs to you but is used more by others?
Your name.
26. What gets wetter as it dries?
A towel.
27. What can fill a room but takes up no space?
Light.
28. If you have me, you want to share me. If you share me, you haven’t got me. What am I?
A secret.
29. What goes up and down without moving?
Stairs.
30. What is it that lives if it is fed, and dies if you give it a drink?
Fire.
Riddles about Compound Words
Compound words are words made up of two other words. See if you can break apart the compounds in these riddles.
31. What do you call a funny mountain?
Hill-arious.
32. What is an astronaut’s favorite place on a computer?
The space bar.
33. Where do mermaids see movies?
At the dive-in.
34. What do you call a dinosaur that is sleeping?
A dino-snore.
35. What is fast, loud and crunchy?
A rocket chip.
36. Why did the scientist install a knocker on his door?
To win the No-bell prize!
37. Why did the traffic light turn red?
You would too if you had to change in the middle of the street!
38. What did the Winnie the Pooh say when he sat on a block of ice?
Brrr! A cold spot!
39. What did the surgeon say to the patient who insisted on closing up his own incision?
Suture self!
40. What do you get if you cross a centipede with a parrot?
A walkie-talkie.
Riddles about Portmanteaus
A portmanteau is a word that blends the sounds and meanings of two other words. Can you decipher the blended words in these riddles?
41. What do you call a funny feline?
A meow-sarus.
42. What do you call cheese that doesn’t belong to you?
Nacho cheese.
43. What do you get when you cross a shark and a snowman?
Frostbite.
44. What do you call a fake noodle?
An impasta.
45. What do you call an elephant that flies?
A jumbo jet.
46. What musical instrument is found in the bathroom?
A tuba toothpaste.
47. If April showers bring May flowers, what do May flowers bring?
Pilgrims.
48. What did the baby corn say to the mama corn?
Where’s pop corn?
49. What do you call a funny doorbell?
A ding-a-ling.
50. What streets do ghosts haunt?
Dead ends.
Riddles about Contractions
Contractions combine two words using an apostrophe. See if you can figure out the full forms in these contracted riddles.
51. Where does a bee go when he wants a ride?
To the buzz stop.
52. Why did the computer keep sneezing?
It had a virus!
53. What’s a robot’s favorite type of music?
Heavy metal.
54. Why can’t a bicycle stand up by itself?
Because it’s two tired.
55. What did the firefighter name his twin sons?
José and Hose B.
56. Why do seagulls fly over the sea?
Because if they flew over the bay, they’d be bagels!
57. How does the moon cut his hair?
Eclipse it.
58. What did one wall say to the other?
I’ll meet you at the corner.
59. What did the paper say to the pencil?
‘Write’ on!
60. Why was the broom late?
It overswept.
Riddles about Antonyms
Antonyms are words with opposite meanings. Can you join these riddles together with their antonymous answers?
61. What goes up and down but does not move?
Stairs.
62. You buy me to eat but never eat me. What am I?
A plate.
63. What gets bigger the more you take away?
A hole.
64. The more of them you take, the more you leave behind. What are they?
Footsteps.
65. What goes through cities and fields, but never moves?
A road.
66. What can you catch but not throw?
A cold.
67. What gets wet while drying?
A towel.
68. What can run but not walk?
Water.
69. What starts with E, ends with E, but only has one letter?
An envelope.
70. What loses its head in the morning and gets it back at night?
A pillow.
Riddles with Multiple Meanings
Some words have multiple meanings, making them ideal for riddles. See if you can think flexibly and find the intended meaning.
71. What has hands but cannot clap?
A clock.
72. What has a head and a tail but no body?
A coin.
73. What gets wetter as it dries?
A towel.
74. What comes once in a minute, twice in a moment, but never in a thousand years?
The letter M.
75. What belongs to you but is used more by others?
Your name.
76. I have cities but no houses, forests but no trees, and water but no fish. What am I?
A map.
77. What goes through towns and over hills but never moves?
Roads.
78. Poor people have it. Rich people need it. If you eat it you die. What is it?
Nothing.
79. People buy me to eat but never eat me. What am I?
Plates.
80. What gets broken without being held?
A promise.
Riddles with Puns
Puns play with multiple meanings in humorous ways. Can you solve the punny riddles below?
81. What do you call a funny mountain?
Hill-arious.
82. Did you hear about the hungry clock?
It went back four seconds.
83. Which is the most patient: blueberries, strawberries, or grapes?
Grapes – they wait years to be wine!
84. I’m tall when I’m young and short when I’m old. What am I?
A candle.
85. Why shouldn’t you tell an egg a joke?
It might crack up!
86. Why did the golfer wear two pairs of pants?
In case he got a hole in one!
87. What did the janitor say when he jumped out of the closet?
“Supplies!”
88. Which is the loudest vegetable?
The scream bean.
89. What do you call a dog magician?
A labracadabrador.
90. Why was the baby strawberry crying?
Because her parents were in a jam.
91. Why don’t eggs tell jokes?
They’d crack each other up.
Conclusion
How did you do with these riddles? Wordplay provides endless possibilities for riddles. From homophones to puns, shades of meaning to compounds, the fun is in deciphering the puzzle. Riddles encourage flexible thinking as you explore multiple interpretations. So next time you come across a tricky word riddle, enjoy the mental challenge!
