What word becomes shorter when you add two letters to it?
Hint
Look closely at the riddle itself.
Show answer
Short
Why it works: Add the letters E and R to "short" and you get "shorter," even though the word got longer.
Ages 10–11 · 25 riddles · answers hidden
Riddles for 5th Graders
Fifth graders like riddles that feel like a challenge: lateral-thinking puzzles, letter and spelling tricks, and math riddles with fractions and number properties. All of them can be solved by a class in about a minute, with the hint as a backup.
You're running a race, and you pass the runner in second place. What place are you in now?
Hint
Picture exactly whose spot you just took.
Show answer
Second place
Why it works: You moved into the spot of the runner you passed, who was second, so now you're second, not first.
I have keys but no locks, a space but no room, and you can enter, but you can't go inside. What am I?
Hint
You tap on me to type a story on a computer.
Show answer
A keyboard
Why it works: A keyboard has letter keys, a space bar, and an Enter key, but no real locks, rooms, or doors.
What three different counting numbers give the same answer whether you add them together or multiply them together?
Hint
All three numbers are smaller than 5.
Show answer
1, 2, and 3
Why it works: 1 + 2 + 3 = 6 and 1 × 2 × 3 = 6, so adding and multiplying give the same answer.
What comes once in a minute, twice in a moment, but never in a thousand years?
Hint
Don't think about time; look at how the words are spelled.
Show answer
The letter M
Why it works: "Minute" has one M, "moment" has two, and "a thousand years" has none, so it's about letters, not time.
Where does Friday come before Thursday?
Hint
Think about a big book where words are listed in ABC order.
Show answer
In the dictionary
Why it works: Words in a dictionary are in alphabetical order, and F comes before T.
How can you add eight 8s together to get exactly 1,000?
Hint
You're allowed to put 8s side by side to make bigger numbers.
Show answer
888 + 88 + 8 + 8 + 8
Why it works: 888 + 88 = 976, and adding three more 8s makes 1,000, using eight 8s in all.
I have an ear but can't hear, and I have art but can't draw. I'm beating inside your chest right now. What am I?
Hint
Spell the answer and look for smaller words hiding inside.
Show answer
Your heart
Why it works: The word "heart" has the smaller words "ear" and "art" hidden in its letters: h-EAR-t and he-ART.
Two mothers and two daughters went to a movie together, but they needed only three tickets, and nobody got in free. How?
Hint
Think about three generations of one family.
Show answer
A grandmother, her daughter, and her granddaughter
Why it works: The middle person is both a mother and a daughter, so three people fill all four roles.
I have a needle, but I never sew. No matter which way you turn me, I point the same direction. What am I?
Hint
Hikers use me so they don't get lost in the woods.
Show answer
A compass
Why it works: A compass needle is a tiny magnet that always swings to point north, not a needle for sewing.
What has four eyes but can't see a thing?
Hint
Think of a US state and river with a very tricky spelling.
Show answer
Mississippi
Why it works: "Mississippi" is spelled with four I's, and the letter "I" sounds exactly like "eye."
I'm a prime number between 10 and 20. My digits add up to 4, and if you flip my digits around, I'm still prime. What am I?
Hint
List the prime numbers between 10 and 20, then add each one's digits.
Show answer
13
Why it works: 13 is prime, 1 + 3 = 4, and flipped around it becomes 31, which is also prime.
What falls but never breaks, and what breaks but never falls?
Hint
Think about what happens at sunset and at sunrise.
Show answer
Night and day
Why it works: We say night "falls" when it gets dark and day "breaks" at sunrise, but nothing actually drops or cracks.
What is so delicate that just saying its name breaks it?
Hint
Your teacher might ask for it before a test begins.
Show answer
Silence
Why it works: Silence means no sound at all, so the moment you say its name out loud, you've made a sound and broken it.
I'm a fraction equal to one-fourth. My numerator and denominator add up to 10. What fraction am I?
Hint
Make an equivalent fraction by multiplying the top and bottom by the same number.
Show answer
2/8
Why it works: 2/8 simplifies to 1/4, and 2 + 8 = 10, so it matches both clues.
Forward I'm heavy, but backward I'm not. What word am I?
Hint
I'm a short word that means 2,000 pounds.
Show answer
Ton
Why it works: A "ton" is a heavy 2,000 pounds, and if you spell it backward, you get the word "not."
I'm lighter than a feather, yet even the strongest person in the world can't hold me for very long. What am I?
Hint
You hold it in right before you swim underwater.
Show answer
Your breath
Why it works: Air weighs almost nothing, but "holding" your breath means keeping air in your lungs, and nobody can do that for long.
Ava, Ben, and Cy each have a different pet: a cat, a dog, or a fish. Ava's pet has no fur. Ben's pet barks. Who owns the cat?
Hint
Figure out Ava's and Ben's pets first.
Show answer
Cy
Why it works: Ava's pet has no fur, so it's the fish; Ben's barks, so it's the dog, which leaves the cat for Cy.
Maya trick-or-treats at 12 houses and gets 3 pieces of candy at each. She gives one-fourth of it to her brother. How many pieces does she keep?
Hint
First find her total, then figure out what one-fourth of it is.
Show answer
27 pieces
Why it works: 12 × 3 = 36 pieces, one-fourth of 36 is 9, and 36 - 9 = 27 pieces left for Maya.
If April showers bring May flowers, what do Mayflowers bring?
Hint
Think about a famous ship from the first Thanksgiving story.
Show answer
The Pilgrims
Why it works: The Mayflower was the ship that carried the Pilgrims to America in 1620, so this "Mayflower" isn't a flower at all.
What kind of angle is never wrong?
Hint
Think of the square corner on a sheet of paper.
Show answer
A right angle
Why it works: "Right" can mean correct, but a right angle is a square corner that measures exactly 90 degrees.
You're standing in a line of 9 kids. There are just as many kids in front of you as behind you. What place in line are you?
Hint
Remember not to count yourself when you split up the other kids.
Show answer
Fifth in line
Why it works: Without you, there are 8 other kids, so 4 are in front and 4 are behind, which puts you 5th.
I paint feathery white patterns on your window on cold mornings, but I never use a brush. What am I?
Hint
I melt away when the sun warms up the glass.
Show answer
Frost
Why it works: Frost forms when water in the air freezes into tiny ice crystals on cold glass, making lacy patterns without a brush.
I'm less than 50. Divide me by 2, 3, 4, or 6 and there's always 1 left over. I'm also in the 7 times table. What number am I?
Hint
Check the odd numbers in the 7 times table, one at a time.
Show answer
49
Why it works: 48 can be divided evenly by 2, 3, 4, and 6, so 49 always leaves 1 extra, and 49 = 7 × 7.
I'm a number. Put one letter in front of me, and I turn into a word that means "not any." What number am I?
Hint
Try adding a letter to the front of each small number word.
Show answer
One
Why it works: Put an N in front of "one" and it spells "none," which means not any at all.
What works for 10 and 11 year olds
- Lateral-thinking riddles where the trick is in how you read the question.
- Letter and spelling riddles (“What word gets shorter when you add letters?”).
- Math riddles with fractions, multiplication and number properties.
Classroom ideas
- Ask for the reasoning, not just the answer. Explaining is the writing skill.
- Let a student run the presenter while the class competes in teams.
- Students who solve it early write a harder version for tomorrow.