How to play Riddle of the Day
There's one riddle a day, and everyone gets the same one. There's no timer and nothing to type. It's you, the riddle and as much thinking time as you want.
- 1Read today's riddle. Most riddles hide the answer in a double meaning, so pay attention to every word.
- 2Think it over. Say your guess out loud or jot it down, so you can't quietly change your mind later.
- 3Stuck? Reveal a hint. There are up to three, and each one only shows up when you ask for it.
- 4When you're ready, reveal the answer.
- 5Mark whether you got it. Be honest with yourself. It's your streak.
- 6Come back tomorrow for the next riddle. Your streak counts the days you solved it.
A new riddle appears every night at midnight Eastern time, which is 9 p.m. on the West Coast. If you missed one, it's waiting in the list of past riddles.
Past riddles with answers
Missed a day, or just want more? Here are the earlier riddles. Each answer stays hidden until you tap it, so you can try them yourself first, or read them aloud and let everyone guess before you reveal.
- No. 1
I have keys but no locks, space but no room, and you can enter but never go inside. What am I?
Show answer
A keyboard
More riddles
How many times can you subtract 10 from 100?
Show answer
Only once
I'm an odd number. Take away one letter and I become even. What number am I?
Show answer
Seven
I'm taken from a mine and shut up in a wooden case, from which I'm never released, and yet almost everyone uses me. What am I?
Show answer
Pencil lead
Which bow can never be tied?
Show answer
A rainbow
Which is correct: "The yolk of the egg is white" or "The yolk of the egg are white"?
Show answer
Neither, yolks are yellow
I'm green on the outside and red on the inside, with black seeds, and I'm a summer favorite. What am I?
Show answer
A watermelon
What kind of dog never bites?
Show answer
A hot dog
I appear in the early morning, disappear by noon, and cover the grass with tiny drops. What am I?
Show answer
Dew
I'm round and orange, and on Halloween I get a carved face. What am I?
Show answer
A pumpkin
What comes next in this list: J, F, M, A, M, J, J, A...?
Show answer
S, for September
Why can't a nose be 12 inches long?
Show answer
Then it would be a foot
What do you call a fish with no eyes?
Show answer
A fsh
I can whistle without lips, push without hands, and bend trees, but you can never see me. What am I?
Show answer
The wind
What kind of nut has no shell?
Show answer
A doughnut
What can go up and come down without moving?
Show answer
The temperature
What word looks the same upside down and backward?
Show answer
Swims
I have six faces but never smile, and twenty-one spots but I'm not a Dalmatian. What am I?
Show answer
A die
I fly through the sky with wings, but I never flap them. What am I?
Show answer
An airplane
A boat is full of people, yet there isn't a single person on board. How?
Show answer
They're all married
What did the big flower say to the little flower?
Show answer
Hi, bud!
I sit on your nose and hook onto your ears, and I help you see clearly. What am I?
Show answer
Glasses
I'm big and brown, I have humps, I live in the desert, and I can go days without water. What am I?
Show answer
A camel
What English word has three double letters in a row?
Show answer
Bookkeeper
I have lots of buttons but I'm not a shirt, and I'm always getting lost in the couch. What am I?
Show answer
A remote control
What do you call a pig that does karate?
Show answer
A pork chop
I get whiter the dirtier I get. What am I?
Show answer
A chalkboard
I'm an insect that glows at night like a tiny flashlight. What am I?
Show answer
A firefly
A girl has as many brothers as sisters, but each brother has only half as many brothers as sisters. How many boys and girls are in the family?
Show answer
Four girls and three boys
If a red house is made of red bricks and a blue house is made of blue bricks, what is a greenhouse made of?
Show answer
Glass
What do you call a musical group of whales?
Show answer
An orca-stra
If you drop me I might crack, but smile at me and I'll always smile back. What am I?
Show answer
A mirror
I live in the desert, I'm covered in prickly spines, and I hardly ever need water. What am I?
Show answer
A cactus
Name three days in a row without saying the name of any day of the week.
Show answer
Yesterday, today and tomorrow
I have ears but can't hear. You throw away my outside, cook my inside, eat my outside and throw away my inside. What am I?
Show answer
Corn
I let you walk over water without getting wet. What am I?
Show answer
A bridge
I start as a caterpillar, sleep in a cocoon, and wake up with colorful wings. What am I?
Show answer
A butterfly
What walks on four legs in the morning, two legs at noon, and three legs in the evening?
Show answer
A person
Why are fish so smart?
Show answer
They live in schools
When is a door not a door?
Show answer
When it's ajar
I'm brown and sweet, I melt in your hand, and I come in bars. What am I?
Show answer
Chocolate
I come without being called, I make you jump, and people try to scare me away. What am I?
Show answer
Hiccups
If you have a bowl with six apples and you take away four, how many do you have?
Show answer
Four
How many letters are in "the alphabet"?
Show answer
Eleven
I'm round and shiny, I float through the air, and if you touch me, pop! I'm gone. What am I?
Show answer
A bubble
I have no legs, I slither on the ground, and I hiss. What am I?
Show answer
A snake
I have a peak but no hat, a foot but no shoes, and my face is often covered in snow. What am I?
Show answer
A mountain
How can you drop a raw egg onto a concrete floor without cracking it?
Show answer
The floor won't crack
What kind of key opens a banana?
Show answer
A monkey
You leave me on everything you touch, and no one else in the world has one exactly like yours. What am I?
Show answer
A fingerprint
I'm a fluffy pet with long ears, a twitchy nose, and a cotton tail. I hop around. What am I?
Show answer
A rabbit
A rope ladder hangs over the side of a ship, with its bottom rung touching the water. The tide rises one foot every hour. After three hours, how many rungs are underwater?
Show answer
None
What do you call a boomerang that doesn't come back?
Show answer
A stick
I can tell you if you have a fever or if it's cold outside, but I'm not a doctor. What am I?
Show answer
A thermometer
I'm red and round, and people often think I'm a vegetable, but I'm really a fruit. What am I?
Show answer
A tomato
Which room do ghosts stay away from?
Show answer
The living room
What did zero say to eight?
Show answer
Nice belt!
I always know which way is north, even in the dark, but I can't take a single step. What am I?
Show answer
A compass
I'm yellow and very sour. You squeeze me to make a sweet summer drink. What am I?
Show answer
A lemon
What disappears the moment you stand up?
Show answer
Your lap
Why did the bicycle fall over?
Show answer
It was two-tired
My days are numbered, and I'm happiest when you flip my pages. What am I?
Show answer
A calendar
I'm small, red and round, I have a pit inside, and I often grow in pairs on a stem. What am I?
Show answer
A cherry
A man builds a house with four walls, and all four walls face south. A bear walks by. What color is the bear?
Show answer
White
What has four wheels and flies?
Show answer
A garbage truck
I'm soft and fluffy, and I hold your head all night long. What am I?
Show answer
A pillow
I'm huge, I have a giant mouth, and my name means "river horse". What am I?
Show answer
A hippopotamus
Why did the student eat his homework?
Show answer
It was a piece of cake
What do you call a fake noodle?
Show answer
An impasta
I'm a mountain with a hot temper. When I get angry, I spill fire from my top. What am I?
Show answer
A volcano
I have eight arms, three hearts, and I squirt ink when I'm scared. What am I?
Show answer
An octopus
What do you get if you add 2 to 200 four times?
Show answer
202 every time
What did one wall say to the other wall?
Show answer
I'll meet you at the corner
I have a head full of bristles, and I visit your mouth twice a day. What am I?
Show answer
A toothbrush
I'm small, round and juicy, I grow in bunches on vines, and when I'm dried, I become a raisin. What am I?
Show answer
Grapes
A man was driving a black truck with no lights on. There was no moon and no streetlights. A woman dressed in black crossed the road, but he saw her and stopped in time. How?
Show answer
It was daytime
What do you call a sleeping bull?
Show answer
A bulldozer
I'm small, but I can open the biggest door. You keep me on a ring. What am I?
Show answer
A key
I'm pink, I roll in the mud to stay cool, and I say "oink". What am I?
Show answer
A pig
What three positive numbers give the same result whether you add them or multiply them?
Show answer
1, 2 and 3
What do clouds wear under their shorts?
Show answer
Thunderwear
Bury me in the ground and I come back bigger, greener and taller. What am I?
Show answer
A seed
I'm tiny and hard-working, I carry crumbs much heavier than me, and I live in a colony. What am I?
Show answer
An ant
I start with E, I end with E, and I usually contain only one letter. What am I?
Show answer
An envelope
What do you call a dog magician?
Show answer
A labracadabrador
I come to you when you sleep and disappear when you wake. Sometimes I'm silly, and sometimes I'm wonderful. What am I?
Show answer
A dream
I'm big and furry, I love honey, and I sleep all winter long. What am I?
Show answer
A bear
The more there is of me, the less you see. What am I?
Show answer
Darkness
What word describes how you feel before a big test, and spells something sweet when you read it backward?
Show answer
Stressed
I'm useless on my own, but put me with my neighbors and together we make a picture. What am I?
Show answer
A puzzle piece
I'm very long, I run on tracks, and I go "choo-choo". What am I?
Show answer
A train
Mr. Bigger, Mrs. Bigger and their baby are standing together. Who is the biggest?
Show answer
The baby
What do you call a snowman in the summer?
Show answer
A puddle
Everyone is happy to give me, but hardly anyone likes to take me. What am I?
Show answer
Advice
I'm a mammal with wings, and I sleep upside down all day. What am I?
Show answer
A bat
What question can you never answer "yes" to?
Show answer
Are you asleep?
How do you make the number one disappear?
Show answer
Add a G to make "gone"
I keep your feet on the ground, I make apples fall, and I'm the reason what goes up must come down. What am I?
Show answer
Gravity
I wear a crown, I have spiky skin, and I'm sweet and yellow inside. What am I?
Show answer
A pineapple
Two people are born at the exact same moment, but they don't have the same birthday. How?
Show answer
In different time zones
What bird can lift the heaviest weights?
Show answer
A crane
I'm catching, but I'm not a cold. When someone does me, everyone nearby starts doing me too. What am I?
Show answer
A yawn
I'm the planet you live on. What am I?
Show answer
Earth
How can you stand behind your friend while your friend stands behind you?
Show answer
Back to back
What is a cat's favorite color?
Show answer
Purr-ple
I have two sharp blades and two round eyes, and I cut paper, but I'm not a knife. What am I?
Show answer
Scissors
I'm the round white light of the night sky, and I change shape all month long. What am I?
Show answer
The moon
I appear twice in a corner, once in a room, never in a house, but once in a shelter. What am I?
Show answer
The letter R
What do you call a sad strawberry?
Show answer
A blueberry
I'm a cloud that came down to the ground. When I'm around, you can't see very far. What am I?
Show answer
Fog
I'm a white and gray bird who lives by the sea, and I'll steal your french fries if you're not careful. What am I?
Show answer
A seagull
Which side of a cat has the most fur?
Show answer
The outside
Where do fish keep their money?
Show answer
In a riverbank
I have three eyes, red, yellow and green, and I tell cars when to stop and go. What am I?
Show answer
A traffic light
I'm a little red beetle with black spots. What am I?
Show answer
A ladybug
I'm my mother's child and my father's child, but I'm nobody's son. Who am I?
Show answer
A daughter
What kind of bagel can fly?
Show answer
A plain bagel
I cost nothing, I can be seen across a room, and when you give me away, you usually get one back. What am I?
Show answer
A smile
I look like a tiny green tree, but you eat me with dinner. What am I?
Show answer
Broccoli
A patch of lily pads doubles in size every day. It takes 20 days to cover a whole pond. How many days does it take to cover half the pond?
Show answer
19 days
How to get better at riddles
- Question the obvious reading. If a riddle mentions a neck but no head, think of objects, not animals.
- Look for words with two meanings, like bark, ring, key, bat or bank. Riddles love them.
- Notice what the riddle doesn't say. A missing detail is often the whole trick.
- Think small and ordinary. Answers to classic riddles are often everyday things: a shadow, an egg, a towel, time.
- Use one hint, then wait a minute before revealing the next. Your brain often does the rest on its own.
- Say it out loud. Hearing the words can make a pun click that you missed while reading.
Hints, streaks and sharing
Each riddle comes with up to three hints. They appear one at a time, so you can take just a nudge and keep the rest hidden. Some days you won't need any. On the hard riddles you'll be glad they're there.
After you reveal the answer, you mark whether you got it. Your streak counts the days you solved it, and your streak and stats are saved only on the device you play on. There's no account, so a new phone, a different browser or cleared site data means starting over.
You can also share your result with friends. The summary is spoiler-free, so they can try the riddle without seeing the answer first.
Riddles for breakfast, class and road trips
Riddles are made to be read out loud. Try today's at the breakfast table and give everyone until the end of the meal to answer. Kids love being the one who gets it first, and adults are often the last to see it.
Teachers can use the riddle of the day as a quick warm-up at the start of class. It gets students thinking about words, meanings and logic, and the past riddles list gives you plenty more for a slow Friday.
On road trips, a passenger reads the riddle and the whole car guesses, the driver included, since the driver only needs to listen. All the riddles are family-friendly, so they work as riddles for kids and grown-ups alike.
A very old kind of puzzle
Riddles are one of the oldest word games around. In Greek myth, the Sphinx asked travelers what walks on four legs in the morning, two at noon and three in the evening. The answer is a person, who crawls as a baby, walks as an adult and uses a cane in old age.
The Exeter Book, an Old English manuscript from more than a thousand years ago, holds dozens of riddles, and families have been passing riddles around the table ever since. Riddle of the Day keeps that tradition small and daily: one good riddle, a few hints if you need them, and an answer worth thinking about.
Questions
Is Riddle of the Day free?
Yes. The daily riddle, the hints and the past riddles are all free. The site is supported by ads, and there's no app and no sign-up.
When does a new riddle come out?
Every night at midnight Eastern time, which is 9 p.m. Pacific. Everyone gets the same riddle that day.
Can I see past riddles and answers?
Yes. Earlier riddles are listed further down this page. Each answer stays hidden until you tap it, so you can try them first.
How do the hints work?
Each riddle has up to three hints. You reveal them one at a time, only when you want them, so you can stop after the first.
Do I have to type my answer?
No. There's nothing to type. Think of your answer, reveal the real one, then mark whether you got it.
How does the streak work?
After you reveal the answer, you mark whether you got it. Your streak counts the days you solved it and is saved only on that device.
Does it work on phones?
Yes. It runs in the browser on iPhone, Android phones, tablets and computers. There's nothing to download.
Are the riddles OK for kids?
Yes. Every riddle is family-friendly. Some are easy and some are hard riddles even for adults, so kids often enjoy solving them with someone older.