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Riddles Facts & Worksheets

A riddle is a statement, question, or phrase with a double or veiled meaning that is put forth as a puzzle to be solved.

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A riddle is a statement, question, or phrase with a double or veiled meaning that is put forth as a puzzle to be solved.

See the fact file below for more information on the riddle or alternatively, you can download our 28-page Riddles worksheet pack to utilise within the classroom or home environment.

Key Facts & Information

KINDS OF RIDDLES

  • Enigma riddles are problems that are generally expressed in metaphorical or allegorical language that require ingenuity and careful thinking to find the solution.
    • Riddle: “I am weightless, but you can see me. Put me in a bucket, and I’ll make it lighter. What am I?”
    • Answer: A hole.
  • Conundra riddles pose very tricky problems, usually including puns in their question or answer.
    • Riddle: “What is the difference between a jeweler and a jailer?”
    • Answer: “One sells watches and the other watches cells.”
  • Riddles as poems or prose are solved by breaking down clues from poems and prose.
    • Riddle: I drink the blood of the Earth, and the trees fear my roar,
      yet a man may hold me in his hands.
    • Answer: A chainsaw – by Isabel Hooper
  • Anagrams usually consist of one word that can be extended to whole sentences. Their letters can be reordered to form another word or sentence.
    • Riddle: Tom Marvolo Riddle
    • Answer: I am Lord Voldemort
      – Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

KNOWN HISTORY OF RIDDLES

  • Riddles’ literary ancestry dates from the time of Plato and Aristotle.
  • They were used as a cunning tool to demonstrate wit and wisdom in ancient Greece.
  • According to Aristotle: “Good riddles do, in general, provide us with satisfactory metaphors; for metaphors imply riddles, and therefore a good riddle can furnish a good metaphor.”
    • An ancient Sumerian riddle asks:
    • Riddle: “There is a house. One enters it blind and comes out seeing. What is it?”
    • Answer: A school
  • Writers in poetry soon began to express themselves through riddles.
    • Poem: Dare trespass my threshold?
      Don’t dream you shall flee;
      The strongest, the swiftest,
      cannot evade me.
      I’ll seize you and crush you and
      wrench you apart,
      Though no one may gaze on my
      singular heart.
    • Answer: A black hole
  • This is one of the early modern German riddles:
    • Riddle: There came a bird featherless
      sat on the trees leafless
      There came a maiden speechless
      And ate the bird featherless
      From off the tree leafless.
    • Answer: A Snow
  • In the seventh book of the Old Testament, the Book of Judges, Samson posed a riddle to his 30 guests. He tells them that if they answer correctly, he will give them 30 expensive pieces of clothing, but if they guess wrong, they must give him expensive clothing.
    • Riddle: Out of the eater, something to eat;
      Out of the strong, something sweet.
    • Answer: Bees making a honeycomb inside the carcass of the lion.

RIDDLES FROM MODERN FAMOUS WRITES

  • In J. R. R. Tolkien’s book, The Hobbit, the characters Bilbo and Gollum exchanged several riddles for each other in a riddle war.
  • Riddle: “Voiceless it cries, / Wingless flutters, /
    Toothless bites, / Mouthless mutters.”
  • Answer: The wind
  • Riddle: “A box without hinges, key, or lid, / yet
    golden treasure inside is hid.”
  • Answer: An egg
  • Riddle: “This thing all things devours;
    Birds, beasts, trees, flowers;
    Gnaws iron, bites steel;
    Grinds hard stones to meal;
    Slays king, ruins town,
    And beats mountain down.”
  • Answer: Time
  • In Jane Austen’s novel, Emma, published in 1815, the title character outwits a mercenary suitor when she successfully solves his riddle.
  • Riddle: “My first displays the wealth and pomp of kings,
    Lords of the earth! their luxury and ease.
    Another view of man, my second brings,
    Behold him there, the monarch of the seas!”
  • Answer: Courtship
  • One of the famous minds in history also posed a very tricky riddle.
    Albert Einstein predicted that only two percent of people would be able to crack it.
  • Using these 15 clues, which person owns the pet fish?
    • The Brit lives in the red house.
    • The Swede has a pet dog.
    • The Dane drinks tea.
    • The green house is directly to the left of the white house.
    • The person in the green house drinks coffee.
    • The person who smokes Pall Mall has a pet bird.
    • The person in the yellow house smokes Dunhill cigars.
    • The person in the center house drinks milk.
    • The Norwegian lives in the first house.
    • The person who smokes Blends lives next to the person with the pet cat.
    • The person with the pet horse lives next to the one who smokes Dunhill.
    • The person who smokes BlueMaster drinks beer.
    • The German smokes Prince.
    • The Norwegian lives next to the blue house.
    • The person who smokes Blends has a neighbor who drinks water.
  • Answer: The German owns the fish.
  • Your task is to analyze why it is true that the German owns it. Enjoy!

Riddles Worksheets

This is a fantastic bundle which includes everything you need to know about the riddles across 28 in-depth pages. These are ready-to-use Riddles worksheets that are perfect for teaching students about a riddle which is a statement, question, or phrase with a double or veiled meaning that is put forth as a puzzle to be solved.

Complete List Of Included Worksheets

  • Riddles Facts
  • I Know These!
  • World Riddles
  • Plant Riddles
  • Animal Riddles
  • Math Riddles
  • Poem Riddles
  • Riddles for Humor
  • It’s All in the Clue!
  • My Riddle
  • Our Local Riddles

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Link will appear as Riddles Facts & Worksheets: https://kidskonnect.com - KidsKonnect, May 12, 2020

Use With Any Curriculum

These worksheets have been specifically designed for use with any international curriculum. You can use these worksheets as-is, or edit them using Google Slides to make them more specific to your own student ability levels and curriculum standards.

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