So, back in the old Lost Pathway, we asked each other and tried to solve riddles. Let's set some ground rules.
1. Only ask one riddle at a time.
2. You are allowed to find riddles on the internet to share.
3. You aren't allowed to look for the answer to the riddles on the internet. Honor code here.
I'll kick it off. Here's an old classic riddle I remember hearing when I was young and which I just stumbled on again:
"A man went on a trip on Friday, stayed for 2 days and returned on Friday. How is that possible?"
I think I've heard this before: he was riding a horse named Friday.
Okay oh solver of the riddle. What have ye to share?
Afraid I don't have much. I like riddles, but I don't know if I can think of anything really challenging. The most I have is this:
A man was found shot in his car. There was no sign of entry nor of leaving the car. No trace of gunpowder could be found in the vehicle, nor was any window broken. How was the man shot?
Okay, one of *those* kind of riddles. Let me see.
Were any of the windows open? I know they weren't broken, but if one of them was open he could have easily been shot through an open window.
All the windows had been rolled up (knew I was forgetting something).
Okay, so I'm guessing that "no sign of entry" implies that all doors were locked or had not been opened after he was shot at least, and that there are no signs of bullet holes passing through the car?
I think that the windows were made of bullet proof glass, and the car with the man inside was loaded into a very large cannon and shot a great distance, and the man died upon impact with the ground. Hence, the man was found shot in his car. . .
Yes, all the doors were locked, and there were no bullet holes, so there were no signs on the doors, the trunk, or the roof.
But then the perpetrator didn't really need to worry about that. After all, when is a car open and closed at the same time? What car is it that can be sealed safely against common passerby, every door locked and every window rolled up, and yet you can still feel the wind and the sun when you drive it?
Dang those convertibles!
Here's my reply:
Turn us on our backs
And open up our stomachs
You will be the wisest of men
Though at start a lummox
What am I?
I'm guessing...a book.
If you want a reply, I can't think of anything off the top of my head. I may have to search for something.
It is totally acceptable to search for a riddle.
How about this one?
A man goes out drinking every night, returning to his home in the wee hours of every morning. No matter how much he drinks, he never gets a hangover. This drink is very well known, but is rarely consumed, served warm and taken straight from its source. The man is a sucker for a free drink, especially since he can't live without it. What is his favorite drink?
I'm still considering this. . . So far I've come up short.
Really? Well, that's upsetting. Doesn't it just get pumping when that happens?
Are we discussing a newborn baby and is this milk?
No, but is a special type of person, and this drink does boil - metaphorically - in certain instances.
Gar!
A vampire. Blood is the drink. Your hints were very good.
Here's another for you:
My life can be measured in hours,
I serve by being devoured.
Thin, I am quick
Fat, I am slow
Wind is my foe.
I'm stumped. I want to say "a fly," but it doesn't match up. I have a feeling that it's not a living thing like an animal. It's probably some type of object or concept.
You're correct. It is an inanimate object. If only you could shed light on the subject . . .
A sundial?
A sundial works by light, but would get no help from the light of this.
A candle?
A candle, indeed.
Okay then.
I make you weak at the worst of all times. I keep you safe, I keep you fine. I make your hands sweat, and your heart grow cold, I visit the weak, but seldom the bold. What am I?
Fear or cowardice?
Fear.
Reaching stiffly for the sky,
I bare my fingers when it's cold
In warmth I wear an emerald glove
And in between I dress in gold.
A tree.
Who makes it, has no need of it.
Who buys it, has no use for it.
Who uses it can neither see nor feel it.
What is it?
Tom solved this one for me. A coffin.
I'll post a follow up riddle tomorrow I hope.
As in Tom ******* [Edited for last name: he who was known as Sgread]? Does he have any social media contacts? If he has the time, it would be great if he could pop in occasionally.
The very man, himself. Sgread as he has been known. I've encouraged him to stop by here -- hopefully he will. He has Facebook though I think if you'd like to try to catch up with him.
Here's the next riddle.
I can travel all over the world, but I always stay in my corner. What am I?
Funny thing is I saw this while looking for my own riddle...and now I've forgotten it. I know the corner is metaphorical. I have this feeling like it's a place...
I think I got it: Australia.
It's not Australia,
although it can go there.
It's not a place,
though you'll find it in one.
Deliver me the answer,
And carry to me the message.
A stamp.
How about this?
I have wood but no bark,
leaves that don't fall,
I am made up of branches,
and I come in sizes of all.
I am completely devoured many times,
over and over by a worm of a kind.
If you desire to know the answer of mine,
look for the secret that I've stored inside.
What am I?
A book. Leaves are pages, maybe wood for the paper, a bookworm is the worm. Am I right?
I don't get the secret inside, though.
Sort of. But books don't have branches. They can be found on branches, of course. And once you take them, they're yours...for a price.
You're killing me with this one.
Where do bookworms go to feast? Keep in mind that they don't intend to merely rent their meals...
A library?
But what is the secret inside business?
Library "meals" are intended to be returned. These...well, you get what you pay for.
As for the secret inside......I don't know, I didn't write it. Yeah, that may be a fatal flaw in it.
A bookstore?
I have a fear that I keep barking up the wrong tree, but I think I've got it now. . .
YES!!!!!
Someone by the moniker of Dimers posted this somewhere on the net. I'll repost it here for our riddle.
Lives in winter, dies in summer, grows with its root upwards.
I'll admit that I'm stumped. I doubt that it's actually a plant, and mountain roots don't go upward. I think I need some hints.
NOTE: I've been fine. I just didn't feel the pressing need to post anything at the time.
I'm cousin to the teeth of caves,
and kindred to the ocean waves.
Sounds like something either salt or stone, or something similar. Ice?
Of ice I'm made,
But that's not my name
If you walk beneath me
you've only yourself to blame.
Your mother warned you
of my pointy descent
if once I fall,
I'm shattered and spent.
An icicle.
How about this?
A murderer is condemned to death. He has to choose between three rooms. The first is full of raging fires, the second is full of assassins with loaded guns, and the third is full of lions that haven't eaten in 3 years. Which room is safest for him?
Well, I'll admit to having heard this before. But the lions all starved to death quite a while ago. . .
Here's another for you.
I am around long before dawn.
But by lunch I am usually gone.
You can see me summer, fall, and spring.
I like to get on everything.
But when winter winds start to blow;
Then it's time for me to go!
Is it dew?
Yes! Good one.
I make you see the beauty of nature through colors,
My name makes things weigh less
And I have no weight at all.
What am I?
Light?
Yes.....we're really breezing through these.
What can run but never walks, has a mouth but never talks, has a head but never weeps, has a bed but never sleeps?
A river.
That is correct . . .
I can be cracked, I can be made. I can be told, I can be played. What am I?
A joke?
Yes.....man, we're running out of challenges.
I'll give you an old Anglo-Saxon riddle. . .
My home is not quiet but I am not loud.
The lord has meant us to journey together.
I am faster than he and sometimes stronger,
But he keeps on going for longer.
Sometimes I rest but he runs on.
For as long as I am alive I live in him.
If we part from one another
It is I who will die.
Is it something abstract, like life? Another guess would be the soul, but I have my doubts about that.
Not abstract. Here's some more clue.
Though I wear armor.
I carry no sword.
Though I have a mouth
I speak not
Though I neither walk nor fly
I can travel swiftly between soil and sky.
A ship?
I see ships,
but they look to me
like big dark clouds
above the sea,
But sometimes they drag me
upon the deck
to rend my bones
and chop my neck.
It sounds like a fish....a trout?
Fish it is!
Okay, you may already have heard this one, but here's an Arabian riddle:
A red city, its walls are green, its key is iron and its inhabitants are black slaves.
I don't remember hearing it before but is it a
Watermelon?
Yes.
Here is one from the Exeter book. I included the original Anglo-Saxon because its obviously cool.
My beak is downward and low I move
and dig in the ground. The hoar foe of the forest
directs my movements; and so my master
goes bent over, the guide at my tail,
drives across the field, pushes me and crowds me,
and sows in my swath. I go sniffing along,
brought from the woodland, stoutly fastened,
borne on a wagon. I have many strange ways.
I leave green on one side and black on the other.
Driven through my back there hangs beneath
a well-sharpened point; on my head another,
firm and forward-moving. What I tear with my teeth
falls to the side, if he serves me well,
my lord who behind me heeds me and guides me.
Neb is min niþerweard neol ic fere
⁊ be grunde græfe geonge swa me wisað
har holtes feond ⁊ hlaford min ·
woh færeð weard æt steorte
wrigaþ on wonge wegeð mec ⁊ þyð
saweþ ōn swæð mīn ic snyþige forð
brungen of bearme bunden cræfte
wegen on wægne hæbbe wundra fela
me biþ gongendre grene on healfe
⁊ min swæð sweotol sweart on oþre
me þurh hrycg wrecen hongaþ under
ān orþoncpil oþer on heafde
fæst ⁊ forðweard fealleþ on sidan
ꝥ ic toþum tere gif me teala þenaþ
hindeweardre þæt biþ hlaford min
A scythe?
Dragged am I by four-footed man-friend
Brother to scythe though I cut no wheat
My swaths are deeper and leave no sheaves
No grain fears me but worms despair.
A plow?
That is correct, my friend.
This is probably REALLY simple for you, but it's all I got right now:
I am free for the taking through all of your life
Though given but once at birth
I am less than nothing in weight
But will fell the strongest of you if held
Is it breath, maybe?
Told you it was simple.
What grows when it eats, but dies when it drinks?
Fire?
Nailed it . . .
It speaks with a hard tongue, it cannot breathe, for it has no lung.
Having a hard time with this one. . .
Heavy toll, that one.
A bell?
Yes, it rings true.
I drive men mad for love of me.
Easily beaten, rarely free.
Alcohol?
I have been traded for that draft,
While he who took me watched and laughed.
I'm gonna say...gold.
As is your answer. . .
I build up castles. I tear down mountains. I make some men blind, I help others to see. What am I?
My first reaction was "Time," but I'm not sure it quite fits. It's the best that I have so far. I tried "greed" out for size, but couldn't get it to jive with making men see.
Time it would definitely take, but it's easier when you realize that it's poor to build on it. It actually is quite greedy, particularly for quenching its own thirst at the expense of yours.
Sand. . .
But again, I don't know how it could help people to see, unless you count Jesus rubbing mud on someone's eyes. . .
Indeed. And are not glasses made of sandstone?
I would never have gotten the glasses thing. . .
Here's one I just made up:
Upon my back the scourge of dragons,
Beneath my hair the sound of dancing,
And in my rushing multitudes, thunder.
A thundercloud?
Without me there is no chivalry
Tis but a code
That has been called after me
The power in my legs could shatter
The strongest warrior
And yet with a slight touch
I am led by the will of another.
This may be silly, but...a horse?
A horse indeed!
I'm so fast you can't see me,
Though everyone sees straight through me,
I don't stop until the day you die.
What am I?
Breath?
It's as simple as breath, but it's not often noted. Needless to say, for the person doing it, everything goes dark for a moment.
A blink?
And so it is.
I am a box that holds keys without locks, yet they can unlock your soul.
A heart?
Not a heart
Though many I've moved.
Not a chisel
Though often I've grooved.
A music box?
Who is quick and who is staunch
To tickle the tusks of an oliphaunt?
All those keys without locks
black and white all in a flock.
I'm going to say a piano. (It was a secondary guess before, but "music box" seemed more appropriate at the time.)
And piano it is!
I went into the woods and got it. I sat down to seek it. I brought it home with me because I couldn't find it.
This may be a bad answer, but . . . a tic?
Not exactly. Gets under your skin, doesn't it?
I think I remember this one now.
Is it a splinter or a thorn?
Technically, splinter...but I guess thorn would also suffice.
If I have it, I don't share it. If I share it, I don't have it. What is it?
The whole?
I am what all answers to riddles are
Until you discover the answer.
I am what people say they seek about life
Or the universe
Or the answer to all things difficult
That many would wish easy.
A mystery?
A mystery until you know
And when you know
You have me until you share.
A secret?
That is correct . . .
I am served at a table, In gatherings of two or four;
Served small, white and round.
You'll love some, And that's part of the fun.
What am I?
The first time I read it I couldn't make anything of it. The second time I'm thinking ping pong / table tennis.
Yeah, that's it.
It is true I have both face and hands,
And move before your eye:
Yet when I go, my body stands;
And when I stand, I lie.
A grandfather clock?
A clock it is!
You can see nothing else
When you look in my face,
I will look you in the eye
And I will never lie.
I've read this one before; a reflection or a mirror, I think.
Few seek me
But multitudes trample me in seeking
Long, weary, and myriad are my ways
As through the seasons I'm breaking
And those who trod upon me where I lay
Care little but for taking
their tired steps away.
Grass?
Sometimes, old, I wear a cloak of grass
Sometimes, young, I wear a concrete cast
Sometimes, ancient, I was built to last
Sometimes, quickly, I am built to pass
But often you wend your way upon me.
A bridge?
I cross bridges, and some might say
that bridges are a part of me.
Stone?
I have been made of stones and cobbles
And some who walk me stride or wobble.
A path?
I was going for "road" but I don't see why "path" wouldn't fit the riddles.
You heard me before,
Yet you hear me again,
Then I die,
'Till you call me again.
An echo?
Yeah. I figured it would be rather easy, but I chose it anyway.
He carries his castle
Through wind and rain
Beneath the waves
and out again.
Hidden in mud
or perched atop trees
Deft in the water
if ever he flees,
but if upon land
he is surprised,
a siege must be laid
if pried be a prize.
I think I'm probably off, considering that they don't climb trees, but...a turtle?
A turtle is correct -- and they are often seen on trees fallen beside or in bodies of water.
I can run but not walk. Wherever I go, thought follows me close behind.
The mouth?
If so, a slightly cynical riddle. . .
No, this faucet tends to leak occasionally. There's a motor not far behind it.
A nose?
Definitely. Scent comes before thought.
I help you fall
Yet save your life
I'm used as an instrument of strife
If I fail you will die
Unless you quickly learn to fly.
An airplane? (Yes, it's a ridiculous answer that's most likely far off.)
Not quite.
I can ride upon your back
If wings you happen to lack
I can't make you soar
But you'll pray that I'm not torn.
Oh, a parachute.
Right-o.
I am used to bat with, yet I never get hit. I am near a ball, yet it is never thrown.
I've looked at this a couple times and was completely stumped. Then, I just opened up the thread to write that I was stumped, saw it again, and the answer occurred to me.
It is an eyelash!
Here is my riddle for you:
I twinkle in the night,
but I am no star.
I shine in the darkness,
but I am no moon.
I disappear at dawn,
but still I remain.
A lamppost?
I think lamppost is a reasonable answer, but I was going for firefly. I'll give it to you, though.
I'll take it, but I admit that "firefly" is a better answer.
Okay, this one is a little different. If you wish, this will be the only time I post a riddle like this.
Five hundred begins it, five hundred ends it,
Five in the middle is seen;
First of all figures, the first of all letters,
Take up their stations between.
Join all together, and then you will bring
Before you the name of an eminent king.
This riddle was asked by Carasbane years ago in the original riddle thread. The answer is David. It's a good one.
Here's one in return,
I spring when I die
I fly when I'm eaten
I take off my robe
when I am beaten
I'll admit, this one's got me. I want to say "a rug," but that would only make sense for the second half.
The earth? (That's even less likely, but right now, I got nothing else.)
Wheat. The Holy Gospel According to St. John for the win!
Grain was in my mind, but wheat fits perfectly. Good work.
Now what's your riddle?
I am the bearer of loads
I am the spinning you ride
I am the presser of roads
That cannot face tides
A wagon?
Wagons may have two or four
Semis, they have many more.
Ah, a wheel.
I think I was toying with this answer before, but I believe I felt it was too simple.
Riddles are often about simple things, I think.
So what's yours?
I give you a group of three. One is sitting down, and will never get up. The second eats as much as is given to him, yet is always hungry. The third goes away and never returns.
Ugh. Fire is always hungry, and smoke never returns, but fireplaces aren't usually said to sit, are they? Shucks and other comments, Ceitien!
QuoteI drive men mad for love of me.
Easily beaten, rarely free.
This is clearly a description of Woman, not Gold.
And on the slight chance my guess is good enough, here is a riddle I created:
I am born after death as a sign of life,
An image of triumph, having overcome strife.
Hope see my friends when they look upon me,
And companions encouraged - they too can be free.
I can be from animal, from plants or of bone,
Working wonders for friends, but not on my own.
When strangers behold me they often see fear
And corruption and death, for sight is unclear.
Behold me with eyes made anew from the blind
And blind too shall see - for our Maker is kind.
The Cross?
No, but it's the right ballpark.
I'm guessing you're not being so specific as to say no to a cross if the answer you intended were a crucifix?
Otherwise I've got no idea.
Are you referencing a relic?
Ooh, Raven's a smarty! It is indeed a relic of a Saint!
Take away then, O Raven Wise
This one is my own:
I let you see
I let you hear
On water I make it hard to steer.
I say goodbye .
I say hello.
I help to make a rainbow.
A waterfall
No, sir.
Rain?
Not rain.
Here's some help:
Different things am I, but all the same.
All carry this one name.
Some seen, some felt, some heard,
All encompassed by this word.
Water
Not water, though through it move.
Not air, though travel there too.
Sound? (I realize in retrospect that it's definitely not this, but at the moment, I'm stumped for anything else.)
You're close, and this one has been up for quite a while.
The answer is "a wave" or "waves." Light, sound, water, etc.
Flat as a leaf
Round as a ring
Has two eyes
Can't see a thing
I'll make two guesses.
1. A coin: the face has eyes, it's flat, and it's round.
2. A button. Flat, round, and has holes for "eyes."
Choice #2.
I liked that one, Coir.
Here's my next riddle:
They are the pride of the field.
If left in peace they fall.
They are the pride of the wall.
And see many an old hall.
Weapon in wild and handle in hold,
the tool of a champion brave and bold.
Wood?
Of bone am grown
Of bone reborn
Of bone am never grown alone.
Flesh? Or leather? (I'm stumped right now, and those probably aren't good answers.)
Of me they make a chandelier
By me they hold the knife so near
They count my points to show their pride.
And hang me on the wall-side.
Ivory?
Ivory is a cousin of mine,
Born of a hide of different kind.
Teeth?
Often mounted, never ridden.
In the tavern, never hidden.
I'm gonna go for the gold and say....Antlers!
As it is said in German, "da hast du recht." Yes, antlers!
The riddle is yours!
I never was, am always to be,
No one ever saw me, nor ever will
And yet I am the confidence of all
To live and breathe on this terrestrial ball.
I'm not super confident about this but my first guess is "the future"?
Yeah, either "tomorrow" or "the future" will do.
Back to you now.
I am as heavy as water and yet I fly.
I am wingless and yet I soar.
Among the trees sometimes I creep.
At other times I roar.
The wind?
The sailor watches for the wind.
And for me they keep sentry.
When I rage within me mingles
wind and fire and water.
A thundercloud?
Yeah, I was going for cloud.
I stand before you and you think I'm small,
Let me sit down and I will be more tall,
I bear weapons but these you might not see,
When you're blind, secrets are still shown to me,
I walk by myself, wildest of the wild,
Better to make me sing, instead of smile.
Over three years have gone by and this riddle has held its pride of place. I was unable to solve it, but I did ask it to others and a netizen of the name MultiverseTraveller has posed the answer: a cat.
It's been so long that I had to look it up, but yes, it's a cat.
So the ball's in your court now.
I clothe you.
I feed you.
I help you sleep.
You're called me.
You feed me.
You find and keep.
An herb?
(That's just a shot in the dark, and I'm most likely wrong. I just wanted you to know that I'm not ignoring the thread.)
Actually, I'm going to throw out another answer that I'm more confident in - a sheep.
And so it is. The riddle falls to you, Coir.
This one is probably easy, but I just liked the sound of it.
On my own, I am darkness, a black abyss.
But life brings me light with its gentle kiss.
I am quiet and cold, but warmth I can hold.
Alongside beauties and wonders, sights to be told.
My surface may be bare, this I'm aware.
But beautiful secrets I am eager to share.
My mouth so large, I swallow you whole.
To be in my belly is your goal.
What may lie within can drive men to sin.
Greed and desire, gluttony's kin.
For some, I am fear. For others, hope.
My perception shaped from life's scope.
From the earth I have come, and forever will stay,
even if parts of me crumble away.