Feared By Most But Experienced By All

I am a five-letter word and am feared by most but experienced by all. If you remove my first and last letters I bring life. If you add an ‘r’ between the third and fourth letters I am almost nothing and if you remove the first letter from this new word, I am your home.

What am I?

Death (eat, dearth, earth). No one can escape death, but many fear it. Removing the first and last letters leaves eat, and we must eat to stay alive. Adding the ‘r’ turns death into dearth, which is scarcity and removing the first letter of dearth leaves earth, where you live, assuming this riddle hasn’t reached extraterrestrials.

Posted in Riddles

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

A Metal Roof and a Glass Wall

I have a metal roof and a glass wall,
I burn and burn but never fall.

What am I?

A lantern.

Posted in Riddles
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Rope Around The Earth

If a piece of rope was tightly wrapped around the earth and you added 3 feet to its length, how high could you uniformly raise it from the earth’s surface?

Just short of 6 inches.

Thanks to Nigel Coldwell for this one.

Posted in Brain Teasers

I Can Always Go Up, Never Down

I can always go up, never down,
I can always turn left, never right,
I am always hot when I’m cold

A ski lift.

Posted in Riddles

Kevlar, Fire Escapes and Wipers, Oh My!

What do computer compilers, kevlar, fire escapes and windshield wipers all have in common?

They were all invented by women.

A variation of this brain teaser includes laser printers (they were invented by Gary Starkweather) and bulletproof vests (invented by Casimir Zeglen using silk, though modern vests use Kevlar, so it’s halfway right).

Posted in Brain Teasers

Often Talked Of But Never Seen

Often talked of, never seen,
Ever coming, never been,
Daily looked for, never here,
Still approaching, coming near,
Thousands for it’s visit wait,
But alas for their fate,
Tho’ they expect me to appear,
They will never find me here.

Tomorrow.

Posted in Brain Teasers

Mountain at Night, Morning a Meadow

In the night a mountain in the morning a meadow. What am I?

A bed.

Posted in Riddles

Wolves and Owls

You are in the woods with owls and wolves. There are 22 eyes and 32 legs. How many owls and wolves are there?

5 owls and 5 wolves, (not 6 owls because 2 of the eyes and legs are yours).

2 * owls + 2 * wolves = 20 eyes
2 * owls + 4 * wolves = 30 legs
owls + wolves = 10 eyes → owls = 10 – wolves
owls + 2 * wolves = 15 → 10 – wolves + 2 * wolves = 15 → wolves = 5
owls + 5 = 10 → owls = 5

Posted in Brain Teasers

Builds Its Table On My Shelf

From that which comes within itself,
it builds its table on my shelf.

A spider. The silk comes from within the spider, and the “table” (web) is often built in corners like there are on a bookshelf.

By Sef Daystrom

Posted in Riddles