Nothing tickles the funny bone, or works the mind, quite like a good riddle. Kids love them because they are clever and fun. Adults like them because they stimulate a child’s creativity and cognitive thinking skills.
So, what classifies as a riddle? Sometimes it can be hard to separate riddles for kids and jokes for kids, because the answers can make you feel like you’ve just heard one of the corniest dad jokes. But a riddle is a statement or question that has multiple meanings and needs to be solved. (No knock-knock joke setups here.) So, even if they have a punchline, there’s still some kind of wordplay involved that needs to be worked out.
Our list of the best riddles for kids has a little of everything. There are real head-scratchers for the older kids, to sidesplitting puns for the younger crowd and even a little math thrown in there. We broke them into categories, so you’ll be sure to find the right riddle for your audience. Break out this list next time you’re waiting for a food order, stuck in the doctor’s office, on a long line or any other time you need to keep a kid’s mind occupied.
Tricky Riddles for Big Kids
Q: What goes up but never comes back down?
A: Your age.
Q: I go all around the world, but never leave the corner. What am I?
A: A stamp.
Q: If you drop a yellow hat in the Red Sea, what does it become?
A: Wet
Q: I’m always on the dinner table, but you don’t get to eat me. What am I?
A: Plates and silverware
Q: What goes in a birdbath but never gets wet?
A: The bird’s shadow.
Q: What two things can you never eat for breakfast?
A: Lunch and dinner.
Q: If you drop me, I’m sure to crack, but smile at me and I’ll smile back. What am I?
A: A mirror.
Q: What has hands and a face, but can’t hold anything or smile?
A: A clock.
Q: You’ll find me in Mercury, Earth, Mars and Jupiter, but not in Venus or Neptune. What am I?
A: The letter “R.”
Q: I’m light as a feather, yet the strongest person can’t hold me for five minutes. What am I?
A: Your breath.
Q: I have cities, but no houses. I have forests, but no trees. I have water, but no fish. What am I?
A: A map.
Q: What can you break, even if you never pick it up or touch it?
A: A promise.
Q: What is yours but mostly used by others?
A: Your name.
Q: Which question can you never answer “yes” to?
A: “Are you asleep?”
Q: What’s something that, the more you take, the more you leave behind?
A: Footsteps
Animal Riddles for Kids
Q: Without me Thanksgiving and Christmas are incomplete, when I’m on the table everyone tends to overeat. What am I?
A: Turkey
Q: What’s bright orange with green on top and sounds like a parrot?
A: A carrot
Q: Why do bees have sticky hair?
A: Because they use their honeycombs.
Q: What do you call a bear with no teeth?
A: A gummy bear.
Q: What’s black, white and blue?
A: A sad zebra.
Q: An elephant in Africa is called Lala. An elephant in Asia is called Lulu. What do you call an elephant in Antarctica?
A: Lost.
Q: I jump when I walk and sit when I stand. What am I?
A: Kangaroo
Q: I grow down as I grow up. What am I?
A: A goose. Goose feathers are called down.
Q: I’m the father of fruits. What am I?
A: A papa-ya.
Fun Riddles for Little Kids
Q: What do you get when you cross a snowman and a vampire?
A: Frostbite.
Q: What’s really easy to get into, and hard to get out of?
A: Trouble
Q: What can jump higher than a building?
A: Anything that can jump — buildings don’t jump, silly!
Q: Where would you take a sick boat?
A: To the dock.
Q: What did the zero say to the eight?
A: “Nice belt!”
Q: What gets wet while drying?
A: A towel
Q: I’m tall when I’m young, and I’m short when I’m old. What am I?
A: A candle
Q: What room do ghosts avoid?
A: The living room.
Q: I can be cracked or played; told or made. What am I?
A: A joke!
Q: What has a head and a tail but no body?
A: A coin.
Q: I sometimes run, but I cannot walk. What am I?
A: Your nose.
Q: What has four fingers and a thumb but isn’t alive?
A: A glove
Food Riddles for Kids
Q: When I’m ripe, I’m green, when you eat me, I’m red, and when you spit me out, I’m black. What am I?
A: A watermelon.
Q: What fruit can you never cheer up?
A: A blueberry.
Q: What has to be broken before you can use it?
A: An egg
Q: What kind of foods are the most fun at parties?
A: Fungi.
Q: What is the richest nut?
A: A cash-ew.
Q: Why did the citrus tree go to the hospital?
A: Lemon-aid.
Q: You cut me, slice me, dice me, and all the while, you cry. What am I?
A: An onion.
Q: What kind of room has no doors or windows?
A: A mushroom.
Q: What kind of apples do computers prefer?
A: Macintosh.
Q: What kind of cup doesn’t hold water?
A: A cupcake.
Math Riddles for Kids
Q: When things go wrong, what can you always count on?
A: Your fingers.
Q: What did the triangle say to the circle?
A: You are pointless.
Q: Kate’s mother has three children: Joe, James, and ___?
A: Kate! It’s Kate’s mother, after all.
Q: If two’s a company, and three’s a crowd, what are four and five?
A: Nine!
Q: Why was 6 afraid of 7?
A: Because 7, 8 (ate), 9!
Q: Four legs up, four legs down, soft in the middle, hard all around. What am I?
A: A bed.
Q: A word I know, six letters it contains, remove one letter and 12 remains, what is it?
A: Dozens.
Q: What month of the year has 28 days?
A: All of them
Q: The more you take, the more you leave behind. What am I?
A: Footsteps.