Placed On the Table But Never Eaten

What is placed on the table, cut and passed but never eaten?

A deck of cards. You play card games on a table, cut the deck, then deal (or pass out) the cards, but you only eat the snacks.

Posted in Riddles

A Special Something Shared

The numbers 3, 7, 8, 40, 50 and 60 all share something that no other whole number does. What is it?

When spelled out in English they each have exactly five letters.

Posted in Brain Teasers

Oct 31 = Dec 25

How can Oct 31 and Dec 25 be the same?

Because Oct 31 represents the octal (base 8) number 31, which, when converted to decimal, is 25. Dec 25 is short for Decimal 25, thus the two are equal.

Posted in Brain Teasers

The Age of Three Daughters

I was visiting a friend one evening and remembered that he had three daughters. I asked him how old they were. “The product of their ages is 72,” he answered. Quizzically, I asked, “Is there anything else you can tell me?” “Yes,” he replied, “the sum of their ages is equal to the number of my house.” I stepped outside to see what the house number was. Upon returning inside, I said to my host, “I’m sorry, but I still can’t figure out their ages.” He responded apologetically, “I’m sorry, I forgot to mention that my oldest daughter likes strawberry shortcake.” With this information, I was able to determine all three of their ages. How old is each daughter?

3, 3, and 8. The only groups of 3 factors of 72 to have non-unique sums are “2 6 6” and “3 3 8” (with a sum of 14). The rest have unique sums:

2 + 2 + 18 = 22
2 + 3 + 12 = 18
2 + 4 + 9 = 15
3 + 4 + 6 = 13

The house number alone would have identified any of these groups. Since more information was required, we know the sum left the answer unknown. The presence of a single oldest child eliminates “2 6 6”, leaving “3 3 8” as the only possible answer.

Posted in Brain Teasers

All Those Legs

Two legs sat upon three legs with one leg in his lap.
In comes four legs, grabs one leg, and runs off with him.
Up jumps two legs, grabs up three legs, throws it after four legs,
and makes him bring back one leg.

Who are we?

One leg is a leg of mutton. Two legs is a person. Three legs is a stool. Four legs is a dog.

Posted in Riddles

Invisible Walls

What invention lets you look right through a wall?

A window.

Posted in Riddles

Three Philosophers Under a Tree

Three philosophers are taking a nap under a tree. While they’re asleep, a small boy smears their noses with red berries. When they awake, they each begin to laugh, thinking the other two are laughing at each other.

But then one philosopher stops laughing, realizing his nose is red too. How did he come to this conclusion?

Let’s call the philosopher’s A, B and C. A reasoned that B was confident his nose wasn’t red. If B saw A’s nose wasn’t red, he would be surprised that C was laughing, because C would have nothing to laugh at. But B wasn’t surprised, therefore, A correctly reasoned his nose was smeared.

Posted in Brain Teasers

To Frighten a Thief

What four letters frighten a thief?

OICU (Oh I see you!)

Posted in Riddles

Longest Word in English

What is the longest word in the English dictionary?

Smiles because there is a mile between the two s’s.

Posted in Brain Teasers
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A Leathery Snake

A leathery snake,
With a stinging bite,
I’ll stay coiled up,
Unless I must fight.

A whip.

Posted in Riddles