Riddles

Source: Games For All Occasions
Category: GAMES FOR ADULTS



Few children think they will ever tire of playing games; but all the
same, towards the end of a long evening, spent merrily in dancing and
playing, the little ones begin to get too weary to play any longer, and
it is very difficult to keep them amused.

Then comes the time for riddles! The children may sit quietly around the
room, resting after their romps and laughter, and yet be kept
thoroughly interested, trying to guess riddles.

It is, however, very difficult to remember a number of good and
laughable ones, so we will give a list of some, which will be quite
sufficient to puzzle a roomful of little folk for several hours.

Why are weary people like carriage-wheels?--Answer: Because they are
tired.

An old woman in a red cloak was passing a field in which a goat was
feeding. What strange transformation suddenly took place?--Answer:
The goat turned to butter (butt her), and the woman into a scarlet
runner.

Why does a duck go into the water?--Answer: For divers reasons.

Spell "blind pig" in two letters? P G; a pig without an I.

Which bird can lift the heaviest weights?--The crane.

Why is a wise man like a pin?--He has a head and comes to a point.

Why is a Jew in a fever like a diamond?--Because he is a Jew-ill.

Why may carpenters reasonably believe there is no such thing as
stone?--Because they never saw it.

What is that which is put on the table and cut, but never eaten?--A
pack of cards.

Why does a sculptor die horribly?--Because he makes faces and
busts.

When does a farmer double up a sheep without hurting it?--When he
folds it.

What lives upon its own substance and dies when it has devoured
itself?--A candle.

Why is a dog biting his tail a good manager?--Because he makes both
ends meet.

What thing is it that is lower with a head than without one?--A
pillow.

Which is the left side of a plum-pudding?--That which is not eaten.

What letter of the alphabet is necessary to make a shoe?--The last.

If all the seas were dried up, what would everybody say?--We haven't
a notion (an ocean).

Why is it certain that "Uncle Tom's Cabin" was not written by the
hand of its reputed author?--Because it was written by Mrs.
Beecher's toe (Stowe).

Why is a fishmonger never generous?--Because his business makes him
sell fish (selfish).

What is that which works when it plays and plays when it works?--A
fountain.

What is that from which you may take away the whole and yet there
will be some remaining?--The word wholesome.

Why are fowls the most economical things a farmer can keep?--Because
for every grain they give a peck.

What coin doubles its value by taking away a half of it?--Halfpenny.

Why is it dangerous to walk in the meadows in springtime?--Because
the trees are shooting and the bulrush is out (bull rushes out).

Why is a vine like a soldier?--Because it is listed and has ten
drills (ten-drils) and shoots.

Why is an opera-singer like a confectioner?--Because she deals in
ice-creams (high screams).

If a man who is carrying a dozen glass lamps drops one, what does he
become?--A lamp lighter.

What belongs to yourself, but is used more by your friends than by
yourself?--Your name.

Why is a spider a good correspondent?--Because he drops a line at
every post.

When is the clock on the stairs dangerous?--When it runs down.

Why is the letter "k" like a pig's tail?--Because it comes at the
end of pork.

What is the keynote to good manners?--B natural.

Why is a five-pound bank-note much more profitable than five
sovereigns?--Because when you put it in your pocket you double it,
and when you take it out you will find it in-creases.

Why is a watch like a river?--Because it doesn't run long without
winding.

What is that which flies high, flies low, has no feet, and yet wears
shoes?--Dust.

When has a man four hands?--When he doubles his fists.

What trees has fire no effect upon?--Ash-trees; because when they
are burned, they are ashes still.

What is the difference between a schoolmaster and an
engine-driver?--One minds the train and the other trains the mind.

A man had twenty sick (six) sheep, and one died; how many were
left?--19.

What is that which everybody has seen but will never see
again?--Yesterday.

Which is the best day for making a pancake?--Friday.

Which is the smallest bridge in the world?--The bridge of your nose.

What four letters would frighten a thief?--O I C U.

What is that which goes from London to York without moving?--The
road.

Which is easier to spell--fiddle-de-dee or
fiddle-de-dum?--Fiddle-de-dee, because it is spelt with more "e's."

When may a chair be said to dislike you?--When it can't bear you.

What animal took most luggage into the Ark, and which two took the
least?--The elephant, who took his trunk, while the fox and the cock
had only a brush and a comb between them.

Which of the English kings has most reason to complain of his
washer-woman?--King John, when he lost his baggage in the Wash.

If a bear were to go into a linen-draper's shop, what would he
want?--He would want muzzlin'.

Why is B like a hot fire?--Because it makes oil Boil.

Why was the first day of Adam's life the longest?--Because it had no
Eve.

If an egg were found on a music-stool, what poem would it remind you
of?--"The Lay of the Last Minstrel."

Why is a schoolmaster like a shoe-black?--Because he polishes the
understanding of the people.

Why is a washer-woman like a navigator?--Because she spreads her
sheets, crosses the line, and goes from pole to pole.

Why is an author the queerest animal in the world?--Because his tale
comes out of his head.

Why is it that a tailor won't attend to business?--Because he is
always cutting out.

When can a horse be sea-green in color?--When it's a bay.

Why were gloves never meant to sell?--Because they were made to be
kept on hand.

When are we all artists?--When we draw a long face.

Why are watch-dogs bigger by night than by day?--Because they are
let out at night and taken in in the morning.

When is a tradesman always above his business?--When he lives over
his shop.

Which is the liveliest city in the world?--Berlin; because it's
always on the Spree.

Why is a water-lily like a whale?--Because they both come to the
surface to blow.

Why is a shoemaker the most industrious of men?--Because he works to
the last.

What is book-keeping?--Forgetting to return borrowed volumes.

Why is scooping out a turnip a noisy process?--Because it makes it
hollow.

Why are teeth like verbs?--Because they are regular, irregular, and
defective.

What ships hardly ever sail out of sight?--Hardships.

When is an artist a dangerous person?--When his designs are bad.

Why are tortoiseshell-combs like citadels?--They are for-tresses.

Why is the Isthmus of Suez like the first "u" in cucumber?--Because
it is between two "c's" (seas).

What motive led to the invention of railroads?--The locomotive.

Why are deaf people like Dutch cheeses?--Because you can't make them
here.

When is the best time to get a fresh egg at sea?--When the ship lays
to.

Who was the first whistler?--The wind.

What tune did he whistle?--Over the hills and far away.

Why need a traveller never starve in the desert?--Because of the
sand which is (sandwiches) there.

Why is sympathy like blindman's-buff?--Because it is a fellow
feeling for a fellow creature.

If a Frenchman were to fall into a tub of tallow, in what word would
he express his situation?--In-de-fat-i-gabble. (Indefatigable.)

Why is a diner on board a steam-boat like Easter Day?--Because it is
a movable feast.

Why is a little man like a good book?--Because he is often looked
over.

Why is a pig in a parlor like a house on fire?--Because the sooner
it is put out the better.

What is the difference between a soldier and a bombshell?--One goes
to war, the other goes to pieces.

Why is it dangerous to sleep in a train?--Because every train runs
over all the sleepers on the line.

Spell "enemy" in three letters?--F O E.

Which is the only way that a leopard can change his spots?--By going
from one spot to another.

Why did Eve never fear the measles?--Because she'd Adam.

When is a tall man a little short?--When he hasn't got quite enough
cash.

What houses are the easiest to break into?--The houses of bald
people; because their locks are few.

Why is a watch the most difficult thing to steal?--Because it must
be taken off its guard.

Why is there never anybody at home in a convent?--Because it is an
(n)uninhabited place.

Why does a person who is not good-looking make a better carpenter
than one who is?--Because he is a deal plainer.

What is the best tree for preserving order?--The birch.

Why is shoemaking the easiest of trades?--Because the boots are
always soled before they are made.

What plant stands for No. 4?--IV.

How can a gardener become thrifty?--By making the most of his thyme,
and by always putting some celery in the bank.

Why is it probable that beer was made in the Ark?--Because the
kangaroo went in with hops, and the bear was always bruin.

"What was the biggest thing you saw at the World's Fair?" asked a
wife of her husband.--"My hotel bill!" said he.

Why is C like a schoolmistress?--Because it forms lasses into
classes.

What is that which never asks any questions and yet requires many
answers?--The street-door.

If a man bumped his head against the top of a room, what article of
stationery would he be supplied with?--Ceiling whacks.
(Sealing-wax.)

Which is the longest word in the English language?--Smiles; because
there is a mile between the first and last letters.

Which is the oldest tree in England?--The Elder Tree.

How many sides are there to a tree?--Two, inside and out.

What is that which happens twice in a moment and not once in a
thousand years?--The letter M.

What sea would a man most like to be in on a wet day?--A dry attic.
(Adriatic.)

Why is coffee like an axe with a dull edge?--Because it must be
ground before it is used.

What is the difference between a bottle of medicine and a
troublesome boy?--One is to be well shaken before taken, and the
other is to be taken and then shaken.

What makes more noise than a pig under a gate?--Two pigs.

When is a door not a door?--When it is a-jar.

What is the difference between a naughty boy and a
postage-stamp?--Because one you stick with a lick, and the other you
lick with a stick.

Why did William Tell shudder when he shot the apple from his son's
head?--Because it was an arrow escape for his child.

What is that which the more you take from it the larger it grows?--A
hole.

What is the best land for little kittens?--Lapland.

Why should a man always wear a watch when he travels in a waterless
desert?--Because every watch has a spring in it.

Of what trade is the sun?--A tanner.

What relation is a doormat to a door?--Step-fa(r)ther.

What is that which you cannot hold ten minutes, although it is as
light as a feather?--Your breath.

What is the worst weather for rats and mice?--When it rains cats and
dogs.

What is that which never uses its teeth for eating purposes?--A
comb.

When are two apples alike?--When pared.

What is the difference between a blind man and a sailor in
prison?--One cannot see to go and the other cannot go to sea.

Why is a plum-cake like the ocean?--Because it contains so many
currants.

What pudding makes the best cricketer?--A good batter.

When is a sailor not a sailor?--When he's a-board.

Why is the snow different from Sunday?--Because it can fall on any
day in the week.

What trade would you mention to a short boy?--Grow sir (grocer).

What tree is nearest the sea?--The beech.

Why is a game of cards like a timber-yard?--Because there are always
a great many deals in it.

Why is a tight boot like an oak tree?--Because it produces a corn
(acorn).

Why is a city in Ireland likely to be the largest city in the
world?--Because each year it is Dublin (doubling).

What is the easiest way to swallow a door?--Bolt it.

Why could a negro slave not be caught if he ran away?--Because he
would be sure to keep dark at all times.

Why is a dancing-master like a tree?--Because of his bows (boughs).

Name a word of five letters from which if you take two but "one"
remains--Stone.


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