The Missing Dollar

Three travelers register at a hotel and are told that their rooms will cost $10 each so they pay $30. Later the clerk realizes that he made a mistake and should have only charged them $25. He gives a bellboy $5 to return to them but the bellboy is dishonest and gives them each only $1, keeping $2 for himself. So the men actually spent $27 and the bellboy kept $2. What happened to the other dollar of the original $30?

There is no missing dollar from the original $30 because after getting $1 back, the three travelers had paid a total of $27 for their room ($9 each), not $30. Out of that $27, the hotel has $25 and the clerk kept the remaining $2. If you still want to work from the original $30, the travelers have $3, the hotel has $25 and the bellboy has $2. The misleading part is adding the bellboy’s $2 to the $27, when in fact it should be subtracted.

Posted in Brain Teasers

A Blade of Jagged Cut

Has a blade of jagged cut.
Keeps the quickest hand out shut.
Goes in darkness. Wears a ring.
One is quiet. Many sing.

A key. It has a jagged cut in order to fit the lock. A locked door keeps people out and the keyhole is dark. Key rings are a common way to hold a set of keys, and when you’re using a key that one is quiet, but the rest jingle and jangle.

By Sef Daystrom

Posted in Riddles

I Met An Old Man On London Bridge

I met an old man on London bridge,
As the sun set on the ridge,
He tipped his hat and drew his name,
And cheated at the guessing game.

What was the man’s name?

Andrew. In the third line, “and drew his name”. It works better when you say it since the spelling is a bit off when written.

Posted in Riddles

Today Before Yesterday

I am a rare case where today comes before yesterday. What am I?

A dictionary

Posted in Riddles

Archaeologist Laughed At

An archaeologist publicizes his find, a coin marked 649 BC, but is laughed at by his peers. Why?

No coins were ever marked BC because the BC / AD dating system wasn’t even devised until 525 AD. And it wasn’t widely used until after 800 AD.

Posted in Brain Teasers

I Don’t Exist Unless You Cut Me

I don’t exist unless you cut me, but if you stab me I won’t bleed. I hate no one yet am abhorred by all. What am I?

A fart.

Posted in Riddles

Secure Spy Transfer

You are a spy and need to send an item to a contact in another country without letting anyone else have access to it. All unlocked items will be opened in transit. How can you send this item securely?

Place a lock on the item and send it to your contact. They will place their own lock on the package and return it to you. You remove your lock and send it back. When they receive it, they can unlock the package and retrieve the item.

Posted in Brain Teasers

By Odin’s Beard

Some came from the Sun and Moon,
Others from Thor and his hammer are hewn,

By Odin’s beard, and Frigg and Tiw,
The last is Saturn, from which we grew.

What are we?

They are the origins of the names of each day of the week.

Sunday – Sun day.
Monday – Moon day.
Tuesday – Tiw’s or Týr’s day, the god of single combat, son of Odin.
Wednesday – Woden’s or Odin’s day, god of poetry and of the dead.
Thursday – Thor’s day, god of thunder, son of Odin.
Friday – Frigg’s day, goddess of the clouds, wife of Odin.
Saturday – Saturn’s day, god of fertility and agriculture.

Posted in Brain Teasers

Eyes That Don’t See

Most of you have two eyes. I only have one.
Most of you have eyeballs. I do not.
Your eyes aren’t dangerous, neither are mine.
But all together, I am extremely dangerous.
You can see things with your eyes.
I can’t see anything, even though the air is clear where my eye is.

What am I?

The eye of a tornado or hurricane. Could also be the eye of a needle.

Posted in Riddles
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Counting Your Presents

According the song “The Twelve Days of Christmas”, how many total gifts were received?

364. Here’s the explanation.

Posted in Brain Teasers