Riddles for Adults

A station clock, a chess clock and a stopwatch all measure me, yet none can keep me once I have gone. What am I?

A gardener makes me larger by taking soil away, not by adding anything. What am I?

Shout one word into a tunnel and I return that word late, weaker, and with no idea what it means. What am I?

At midnight I may be tomorrow; by breakfast I have a new name. You can schedule me, but you can never arrive while I am still ahead. What am I?

The same photograph can make a crowd look huge or tiny, depending on which edges are cut away. What silent trick changed the truth?

The more kitchens copy me, the more meals I can make; hide me in a drawer and I feed nobody. What am I?

In a debate I may be made, missed, sharpened, or conceded, though I have no metal tip. What am I?

I arrive as a locked question with all the keys hidden in the clues. Solving me means arranging what is already there. What am I?

I may look awkward as 48 over 64, but the more you break me down by common factors, the clearer I become. What am I?

I sit in a corner, get cancelled before the journey begins, and may cross oceans stuck to someone else's words. What am I?

Feed me dry wood and air and I grow; starve me of oxygen or give me water and I die. What am I?

In wallpaper I am seen, in a drumbeat I am heard, and in a password I am hunted. Once noticed, I am hard to unsee. What am I?

I am first in end, last in place, and appear twice in experience. What am I?

A diver feels me in deep water, a student before an exam, and a tyre when it is inflated. Too much of me can crush. What am I?

No hands are needed to break me, no box can hold me, and keeping me matters only after I have been tested. What am I?

A bank studies me before lending, a writer wants me after a quotation, and a card can run out of me at the worst moment. What am I?

Lawyers build me, logicians test me, and one weak premise can make me collapse. What am I?

I sit under a conclusion so quietly that people may argue above me for hours. Challenge me, and the whole discussion can change. What am I?

A fence may mark me, a deadline may become me, and a joke may reveal me only after it has gone too far. What am I?

A referee gives me, a court records me, and a crowd may pass me before the evidence is complete. What am I?

It leaves no bruise, yet one remembered action can make it grow heavier for years. What is it?

A sunflower head, a pine cone spiral and the numbers 1, 1, 2, 3, 5 all point to me. What am I?

I can stop a sale, protect a boundary, end a request, or save a life. I am only two letters. What word am I?

Two identical glasses hide me. Fill one a centimetre higher than the other, and I appear. What am I?

At a border I may be crossed; in a queue I may be joined; in a script I may be delivered. Same word, three places. What am I?

The moment I am told, I still exist, but I no longer belong to one person. Add more keepers and I become harder to keep. What am I?

I tell time by copying the sun's refusal to stand still; indoors I am useless, and at noon I almost disappear. What am I?

Move me one place in an invoice and ten pounds becomes a hundred; I look tiny, but I can empty a budget. What am I?

Evidence can open me, fear can close me, and one conversation can change me without touching me. What am I?

I am not written on a CV; comfort may hide me, pressure reveals me, and repeated choices build me slowly. What am I?

A detective may reach me without taking a step, and one false clue can send me in the wrong direction. What am I?

A coin is a circle on the table, an oval from the side, and almost a line at eye level. What changed?

Project managers like me broken into tasks; ignored, I grow costlier; examined, I reveal the next step. What am I?

A camera needs me before the picture is sharp; a meeting loses me when every phone starts buzzing. What am I?

A lawyer builds me with facts, doubt weakens me, and proof can make me strong again. What am I?

I begin with two premises and end with a conclusion; if my middle term fails, so do I. What am I?

Scientists trust me only after trying to prove me wrong; assume me without testing and I am just a guess. What am I?

You can count along me, divide me, make me negative, and still never reach my final member. What am I?

Eight is correct after five plus three, wrong after five times three, and meaningless on a blank page. What am I?

I find cracks before publication, improve an argument by pressing its weak points, and work best when the attack is fair. What am I?

Write me in a diary and I am ahead of you; wake up inside me and everyone calls me today. What am I?

Ten seconds before midnight I make a room loud; ten seconds before an exam I make it silent. Same numbers, different feeling. What am I?

I arrive slowly through kept promises, leave quickly after one public lie, and often enter the room before you do. What am I?

A violin string needs enough of me to sing; a room after an argument can have too much of me, even in silence. What am I?

Court records, photographs and scars can show me. Apologies may change my meaning, but not my events. What am I?

What comes next: 3, 5, 9, 17, 33, ?

What comes next: 1, 3, 6, 10, 15, ?

What comes next: 1A, 2B, 4D, 8H, ?

One brick weighs 1 kg plus half a brick. How much does one brick weigh?

A parent is 36 and a child is 9. In how many years will the parent be three times the child's age?

Two numbers add to 20. One number is 6 more than the other. What are the numbers?

You have 8 coins made of 10p and 20p coins. The total is £1.20. How many 20p coins are there?

I am a number. Double me and add 6 to get 30. What number am I?

A cube is painted on all sides and cut into 27 equal smaller cubes. How many small cubes have paint on exactly one face?

What is the maximum number of pieces from 3 straight cuts across a round cake, if each cut crosses all previous cuts inside the cake?

A drawer has black socks and white socks. How many socks must you take in the dark to guarantee a matching pair?

Two fathers and two sons go fishing. Each catches one fish, but only three fish are caught. How is that possible?

You have a 5-litre jug and a 3-litre jug. How can you measure exactly 4 litres?

A bag has red, blue, and green balls. How many must you take to guarantee two of the same colour?

You face north. Turn right, turn around, then turn left. Which way are you facing?

Why did the banana go to the doctor?

Why did the computer want a snack?

Why was the maths book worried?

Why are fish clever?

What is a cow's favourite music?

Why did the tomato turn red?

Why should you not tell an egg a joke?

Why could the bicycle not stand up?

Why are calendars popular?

Why did the ocean say hello?

Why did the clock get hungry?

What do you call a broken drum?

When is a door not a door?

Where does a keyboard sleep?

Why did the tree use the computer?

Why was the potato a good detective?

What did the grape do when it got stepped on?

How do astronauts organise a party?

Why was the moon cafe dull?

Why did the lamp win an award?

Why did the window win the argument?

Why did the glue have lots of friends?

Why was the ruler confident?

Why did the crayon become famous?

Why did the paper win the race?

Why did the shoe go to school?

Why did the cloud stay home?

What do snowmen eat for breakfast?

What does a ghost eat for lunch?

Why did the skeleton not play music?

What did the duck say at the shop?

What is a pirate's favourite letter?

Where do bees get a haircut?

Where do robots go on holiday?

Why did the apple stop running?

Why did the sandwich go to the gym?

Why was the star invited to every party?

Why did the mirror get in trouble?

Why did the dictionary never get lost?

Why did the toothbrush feel important?

Why was the sofa so relaxed?

Why was the ocean good at homework?

Why did the mountain get promoted?

Why was the river good at chatting?

Why did the pencil go to the party?

Why did the book visit the doctor?

Why did the camera feel confident?

Why did the phone need a nap?

Why did the paint feel left out?

Why did the puzzle smile?