The Cost of Household Hardware

A man went to the hardware store to buy items for his house.

1 would cost $.25
12 would cost $.50
122 would cost $.75

When he left the store he had spent $.75, what did he buy?

House numbers.

Posted in Riddles

Blow for Blow They Matched Each Other

Blow for blow,
they matched each other.
Neither would fall to the other.
In the eyes of the crowd,
they were this.

Equal.

By Sef Daystrom

Posted in Riddles
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Tends To Overlook

I am something everybody tends to overlook, no matter how careful they are. What am I?

Your nose.

Posted in Riddles

One Way I’m Feeling Normal

One way I’m feeling normal,
Another I’m extremely thin,
I could be a punishment,
Or the type who always wins.

I’m free from all impurity,
And you may have divined,
I have a keen edge,
But of course I am refined.

Fine.

The riddle refers to a variety of meanings of the word fine.

Feeling normal refers to when you feel fine.
Extremely thin refers to a fine thread.
A punishment refers to being charged a fee.
The one who wins refers to an athlete who is physically trained and hardened close to the limit of efficiency.
Free from impurity refers to measuring the fineness of precious metals.
A keen edge refers to a knife with a fine edge.
Refined refers to fine manners or elegance.

Posted in Riddles

A Trail of Silver

If you carried my burden, you would be crushed.
Though not rich, I leave a trail of silver.

What am I?

A snail. They carry their homes on their back, and a house would crush a person (even the tiny houses). And the trail of silver is a bit of a stretch, but it’s the slimy, gooey substance snails leave behind them.

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A One Letter Change

At my start I last a mere eleven days,
But change one letter and I’m over 31 years.

What am I?

One million seconds (about 11 1/2 days).

Change the “m” to a “b” to get one billion seconds (about 31.7 years).

It’s rather surprising that a million seconds and a billion seconds differ by such a large duration.

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I Climb Higher When Hot

I climb higher when hot,
But beware my rage,
I’ll kill with a breath,
If I can escape my cage.

Mercury. It rises when encased in a thermometer when it’s hot and mercury poisoning results from inhaling mercury.

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A Seemingly Simple Math Problem

What is the answer to this problem?

1 + 1 + 1 + 1 + 1
1 + 1 + 1 + 1 + 1
1 + 1 × 0 + 1 = ?

30.

There are two tricks to this one. The first is 1 × 0. But it’s mostly there as a distraction. Yes, 1 × 0 is 0, but that doesn’t affect anything else in the equation. The second, far trickier element is that the lines ending with 1 don’t have a + sign next to them. That means they should be combined with the following line.

Let’s put the equation all on one line, shall we?

1 + 1 + 1 + 1 + 11 + 1 + 1 + 1 + 11 + 1 × 0 + 1 = ?

And the answer to that equation is 30.

Posted in Brain Teasers

Little Cat’s Feet

It comes in on little cat’s feet,
Is neither sour, nor sweet.
Hovers in the air,
And then is not there.

Fog or mist

Posted in Riddles

Ground Not For Thy Daily Bread

Ground not for thy daily bread,
Leave me in my scented bed,
Ignore me not, lest I doth wither,
My name I leave you to consider.

A flower. The soil they grow in is not used for food, like wheat to make bread, but for their smell. A neglected flower will wither.

Posted in Riddles