Sometimes I Enter With a Gong

I’m a word, six letters long,
I sometimes enter with a gong.

All in order from A to Z,
I start with the letter B.

What is the word?

Begins

It has six letters, when a meditation begins they sound the gong, and the letters are in alphabetical order.

Posted in Riddles
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My Motor Revs, But I’m No Rocket

My motor revs, but I’m no rocket,
I’ll hit you deep within your pocket,
I’m a little tart, don’t be afraid,
Unless life’s gift – then quick, seek aid!

A lemon. It’s a citrus fruit whose juice is acidic and can be used to conduct electricity for motors. A car or other purchase that has problems is known as a lemon and can be expensive to repair. Lemons have a tart flavor but do little harm (unless you get it in a cut, then it hurts like the dickens). The old saying goes, “When life gives you lemons, make lemonade” (I know, it’s spelled aid not ade but it sounds the same and wouldn’t make any sense the other way. It all works out nicely when the riddle is told instead of read.)

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

You Melted My Ice

A full glass of water with a single ice cube sits on a table. When the ice has completely melted, will the level of the water have increased, decreased or remain unchanged?

The water level remains unchanged because the ice cube displaces its own weight. If you’re not convinced, read Archimedes’ Principle, which states that any floating object displaces its own weight of fluid. Still not convinced? Here are a few more sources.

Posted in Brain Teasers

The Pattern of Numbers

These series follow a pattern.
2 4 8
1 17 476
65 20987 3571890

This series does not follow the pattern
18 79 45

What is the pattern?

The numbers must be in ascending order. This can be a fun one to have people work out in person, as they test out three-number series and you can tell them whether or not they satisfy the pattern.

Thanks to Patrick for sending this in and thanks to this video from Veritasium for inspiring Patrick.

Posted in Brain Teasers

I’m Not an Enjoyable Friend

I am something many people don’t enjoy having as a friend, including you. But I am called upon anytime someone is injured. I have 5 letters and when my last letter is put before my first letter, I become a country.

What am I?

Pains. No one enjoys being in pain, when you’re injured you have pain, and when you move the s to the front, it becomes Spain.

Posted in Riddles

Represent The Alphabet

What word or expression does this represent?

ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTVWXYZ

Missing you (U).

Posted in Brain Teasers

The Color of Clouds

First, think of the color of clouds. Next think of the color of snow. Last, think of the color of the moon. Now, what do cows drink?

Water. If the teaser worked, you guessed milk.

Posted in Brain Teasers

An Abandoned Aquarium

There is an abandoned aquarium in an empty house. The aquarium has three large fish and three small fish. But after a week, one large fish and two small fish die.

How many remain in the aquarium?

Six, since no one is there to remove the 3 dead fish.

Posted in Brain Teasers