Around the House Without Touching It

What goes around and in the house, but never touches the house?

The sun.

Posted in Riddles

Fill in the Blank and Discover the Event

Fill in the missing words to make a phrase with both the left and right hand sides. For instance, if you were given GRAPE __________ FLY, the missing word could be FRUIT, making GRAPEFRUIT and FRUIT FLY.

1. TOP __________ AGENT
2. PROXY __________ OF NO CONFIDENCE
3. SECOND-HAND __________ DETECTOR
4. THE SACK OF __________ APPLE
5. ST. LOUIS __________ SIN

Once you have the words, what event does it represent?

1. SECRET
2. VOTE
3. SMOKE
4. ROME
5. CARDINAL

The event is a Papal conclave, when a new Pope is chosen.

Posted in Brain Teasers

The Tortoise, Onion and Tomato

What is three-eighths tortoise, two-fifths onion and two-sixths tomato?

Toronto

3/8 tortoise = TOR (the first three letters)
2/5 onion = ON (the first two letters)
2/6 tomato = TO (the first two letters)

Posted in Riddles
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Keys to Unlock Your Soul

I am a box that holds keys without locks, yet they can unlock your soul. What am I?

A piano.

Posted in Riddles

Not in Any State

Which letter of the alphabet is the only one that does not appear in any of the names of the 50 United States?

The letter Q.

Posted in Brain Teasers

Blindly Picking Socks

You have 12 black socks and 12 white socks mixed up in a drawer. You’re up very early and it’s too dark to tell them apart. What’s the smallest number of socks you need to take out (blindly) to be sure of having a matching pair?

Sock drawer

Three socks. If the first sock is black, the second one could be black, in which case you have a matching pair. If the second sock is white, the third sock will be either black and match the first sock, or white and match the second sock.

Posted in Brain Teasers

Odd Start, Even Finish

What three letter English word has an odd start, an even finish and an infinitely long middle?

The word vex. “v” is Roman numeral 5, which is odd. “x” is Roman numeral 10, which is even. “e” is the base of the natural logarithm and is irrational (e = 2.718281828…). Its mantissa (the part to the right of the decimal point) is infinitely long.

Posted in Riddles

September 10th In Britain

What happened on September 10th, 1752 in Britain?

Nothing happened that day. It didn’t exist due to the transition from a Julian calendar to Gregorian.

Read more here.

Posted in Riddles

A Four Word Admonition

What four word admonition makes the happy person sad and the sad person happy?

The phrase, “This too shall pass.” According to Wikipedia, the well-known phrase is often attached to a fable of a great king who is humbled by these words, and to someone who is experiencing something wonderful, it can be saddening. But to one who is in the pits of despair, it is a phrase that brings relief and hope.

In other words, if a happy person is told, “This too shall pass” it will make them sad. But to a person on hard times, hearing, “This too shall pass” will cheer them up.

Posted in Riddles

Oh, Oh, Oh, No

What number do the three letters O, H and N represent in order to make this addition problem correct?

OH
OH
OH
OH +
-----
NO

O = 2
H = 3
N = 9

23
23
23
23 +
-----
92
Posted in Brain Teasers