What disappears every time you stand up?
Hint
It's where a cat might curl up when you sit down.
Show answer
Your lap
Why it works: Your lap is the flat top of your legs when you sit, so it's gone as soon as you stand.
Ages 9–10 · 25 riddles · answers hidden
Riddles for 4th Graders
Fourth graders want riddles that make them think for a minute. These lean on trickier wordplay, logic riddles with a twist and math riddles about place value, even and odd numbers and multiplication.
What do you call a bull that is taking a nap?
Hint
It's also the name of a big machine that pushes dirt.
Show answer
A bulldozer
Why it works: To "doze" means to take a short nap, so a dozing bull is a "bull-dozer."
I can travel all around the world, but I stay in one corner the whole time. What am I?
Hint
Look in the top right corner of an envelope.
Show answer
A postage stamp
Why it works: A stamp stays in the corner of an envelope while the letter travels across the country or around the world.
I'm a three-digit number. My tens digit is 5 more than my ones digit, and my hundreds digit is 8 less than my tens digit. What am I?
Hint
Start with the tens digit; it has to be very big.
Show answer
194
Why it works: Only 9 works as the tens digit, since 9 - 8 = 1 for the hundreds and 9 - 5 = 4 for the ones.
What is black and white and read all over?
Hint
Listen to how "read" sounds when your teacher says it out loud.
Show answer
A newspaper
Why it works: "Read" sounds like the color "red," but here it means people read a newspaper's black-and-white pages everywhere.
I'm a small nut wearing a little cap. Squirrels bury me in the fall, and if they forget me, I might grow into a giant tree. What am I?
Hint
I drop from oak trees.
Show answer
An acorn
Why it works: An acorn is the seed of an oak tree, so one that stays buried can sprout into a new oak.
Sam's mom has four children. Three of them are named Spring, Summer, and Autumn. What is the fourth child's name?
Hint
Read the very first word of the riddle again.
Show answer
Sam
Why it works: The first word tells you Sam is one of the mom's four children, so the fourth child is Sam, not Winter.
What kind of kid grows up to have horns, hooves, and a beard?
Hint
Think of a farm animal that loves to climb and nibble on everything.
Show answer
A baby goat
Why it works: "Kid" usually means a child, but it's also the real name for a baby goat.
A square piece of paper has 4 corners. If you snip off one corner with a small straight cut, how many corners does it have now?
Hint
Try it with a sticky note, or sketch it and count.
Show answer
5 corners
Why it works: Snipping off one corner removes it but makes two new corners where the cut meets the edges, so 4 - 1 + 2 = 5.
What kind of dog always knows what time it is?
Hint
Think of something you wear on your wrist to tell time.
Show answer
A watchdog
Why it works: A watchdog guards a home, but its name starts with "watch," which is also a small clock you wear on your wrist.
I can fill a whole room but take up no space. I travel faster than anything, and you need me to see. What am I?
Hint
Flip a switch when you walk into a dark room.
Show answer
Light
Why it works: Light spreads into every corner of a room, but it isn't made of stuff, so it doesn't take up any space.
Some months have 30 days, and some have 31. How many months have 28 days?
Hint
Check whether a 31-day month ever gets to day number 28.
Show answer
All 12 of them
Why it works: Every month has at least 28 days, so all 12 months have 28 days, even if they keep going past it.
Which US state is round at both ends and high in the middle?
Hint
Picture the state's name spelled out in capital letters.
Show answer
Ohio
Why it works: "OHIO" starts and ends with a round letter O, and in the middle is "HI," which sounds like "high."
What do you get if you multiply all ten digits, from 0 to 9, together?
Hint
One of those digits has a special power when you multiply.
Show answer
Zero
Why it works: Any number multiplied by 0 equals 0, so once 0 is in the problem, the whole answer is 0.
What has scales but can't weigh a thing, and spends all day swimming?
Hint
It breathes through gills and has fins.
Show answer
A fish
Why it works: "Scales" can mean machines that weigh things, or the small, shiny plates that cover a fish's body.
I'm round like a ball, and you can spin me with one finger. The whole world is on my outside, but I fit on a desk. What am I?
Hint
Find the oceans and all seven continents on me.
Show answer
A globe
Why it works: A globe is a small, round model of Earth that shows the land and oceans, so the world fits on a desk.
It belongs to you, but other people use it much more than you do. What is it?
Hint
Your teacher says it when taking attendance.
Show answer
Your name
Why it works: Your name is yours, but other people say it all the time to call you, while you rarely say your own.
Why did the turkey join the school band?
Hint
Think of the turkey parts some people like to eat at Thanksgiving.
Show answer
It already had drumsticks
Why it works: "Drumsticks" are the sticks used to play a drum, and also the name for a turkey's legs.
I'm thinking of two odd numbers. When you add them, you get 14. When you multiply them, you get 45. What are they?
Hint
Try the odd number pairs that add up to 14, like 3 and 11.
Show answer
5 and 9
Why it works: 5 and 9 are both odd, 5 + 9 = 14, and 5 × 9 = 45, so both clues fit.
Nobody plans me, but kids hope for me all winter. When I come, the school bus stays home and the sleds come out. What am I?
Hint
Some kids wear their pajamas inside out as a silly wish for me.
Show answer
A snow day
Why it works: When heavy snow makes roads unsafe, schools close for the day, so kids get to stay home and play outside.
What has a pupil but never goes to school?
Hint
You're using two of them to read this right now.
Show answer
Your eye
Why it works: "Pupil" means a student, and it's also the name of the dark circle in the middle of your eye.
If today is Wednesday, what day is the day after the day before yesterday?
Hint
Work backward two days first, then go forward one.
Show answer
Tuesday
Why it works: Two days before Wednesday is Monday, and one day after Monday is Tuesday, which is just yesterday!
How many times can you subtract 5 from 25?
Hint
After you subtract the first time, what number are you starting from?
Show answer
Only once
Why it works: After you subtract 5 the first time, you're taking 5 from 20, not from 25 anymore.
I'm a baby that lives in a pond. I have a tail but no legs. When I grow up, I'll be a frog. What am I?
Hint
In spring, you can find lots of us wiggling near lily pads.
Show answer
A tadpole
Why it works: A tadpole is a baby frog that swims with a tail and breathes with gills before it grows legs and lungs.
What kind of plate does nobody ever eat from, even though players slide onto it?
Hint
You'll find it on a baseball field.
Show answer
Home plate
Why it works: A "plate" is usually a dish, but home plate is the five-sided base where baseball players score runs.
What works for 9 and 10 year olds
- Wordplay that hides the double meaning a bit deeper.
- Logic riddles (“the more you take, the more you leave behind”).
- Math riddles about place value, even/odd and multiplication facts.
Classroom ideas
- Set the timer to 60 seconds and let teams talk it out quietly.
- Ask students to prove a math riddle on whiteboards before revealing.
- Use a logic riddle as a warm-up before problem-solving lessons.