The Barber of Seville

The Barber of Seville shaves all men living in Seville.
No man living in Seville is allowed to shave himself.
The Barber of Seville lives in Seville.

Who shaves the Barber of Seville?

Nobody. The Barber of Seville is a woman. Female barbers are rare, but they exist.

And for more fun with barbers, check out the Barber paradox.

Posted in Brain Teasers

Think of Person Who Lives in Disguise

First think of a person who lives in disguise, who deals in secrets and tells naught but lies.
Next tell me what’s the last to mend, the middle of middle and the end of end.
Finally give me the sound often heard during the search for a hard to find word.
Now string them together and answer me this, which creature are you unwilling to kiss?

A spider. The person in disguise is a spy, the letter d is the last letter in mend, in the middle of middle and the last letter of end. When someone can’t think of a word they often say, “Err”. And lastly, I don’t know about you, but I’m not keen to kiss a spider.

This one is a duplicate of Deals In Secrets Tells Nothing But Lies but I’m keeping it to avoid broken links.

Posted in Riddles

Ten Times Two is 0218

10 × 2 = 0218
20 × 2 = 1421
30 × 2 = 1632
40 × 2 = ?

2840.

This makes the first column the start of the Fibonacci series: 0, 1, 1, 2.
The second column is the even numbers: 2, 4, 6, 8
The third column is counting up by ones: 1, 2, 3, 4
And the last column is the answer in the first row in reverse: 8, 1, 2, 0.

Don’t ask what 50 × 2 equals. I have no idea. :)

Thanks to Jim for helping with the solution.

Posted in Brain Teasers
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What I Embrace I Destroy

My first two letters say my name.
My last letter asks a question.
What I embrace I destroy.

What am I?

Ivy. IV is pronounced ivy, y is pronounced why and fast growing ivy can smother and kill trees, shrubs and grass.

Posted in Riddles
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A Big Family Photo

A family photo has the following:
1 grandfather, 1 grandmother
2 fathers, 2 mothers
6 children, 4 grandchildren
2 brothers, 2 sisters
3 sons, 3 daughters
1 father-in-law, 1 mother-in-law
1 daughter-in-law

It could show 29 different people, but what is the smallest number of people if could have?

Eight. 4 children, their mother and father and one set of grandparents.

Posted in Brain Teasers

Useless Keys

What keys don’t unlock any doors?

Piano keys, keyboard keys, monkey, donkey, turkey, jockey, hockey, doohickey, malarkey and passkey. There may be others, but you get the drift.

Posted in Brain Teasers

Silver Tears Falling Down

Silver tears falling down,
Nature’s clear imposter,
Sparkling, shining like a gown,
Adorn an elephant or horse,
Silver, PVC or even lead,
Bringing cheer to all around,
For such a simple thread.

Tinsel.

Tinsel emulates icicles, which are like tears and are clear in nature. Tinsel sparkles and shines, and is used to adorn elephants and horses in India. Tinsel is made from silver, PVC and was once made from lead. Tinsel brings back fond memories to many (including myself) and represents far more than a simple metallic thread would normally warrant.

Happy Holidays!

Posted in Riddles

What Word Could Be Added to Make New Words?

What word could be added to all of these words?

apple
cone
lake
tree
ridge
nuts

Pine.

Posted in Brain Teasers

Take Off My Skin

Take off my skin, I won’t cry, but you will. What am I?

An onion.

Posted in Riddles
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A Shorter Word

What word becomes shorter when you add letters to it?

Short. Adding ‘er’ to short gives you shorter.

Posted in Riddles