40 Rebus Puzzles with Answers
Hi! I am Ollie. Welcome to Rebus Town!
Inside you will find a whole town of rebus puzzles, all kinds, waiting to be cracked. Good luck, and have fun!
Every rebus on this page comes with its answer built in. Type what you see and the card checks you on the spot, a hint ladder nudges you when you stall, and the full decoding appears the moment you solve it or give in. A clean mix of word position tricks, picture sounds and letter play across every difficulty.
Print these 40 rebus puzzles with answers
Grab the whole set as a printable PDF. Puzzles first, full answer key on the last pages.
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Rebus puzzles with answers included
Solve first, check second. Every card grades your typed answer and then explains the trick.
Hints before answers
Stuck? Spend a few stars on a hint before you reveal. Clean solves earn the most.
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1. Sound out the pictures.
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Name the vehicle, then bolt the printed word straight onto it.
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Carnation. CAR plus NATION reads as CARNATION, the flower.
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2. Read it out loud.
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One arrow is a picture of a direction; the other arrow is just a small word.
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Up to speed. The tall arrow gives the direction and the flat arrow gives the TO, bringing you all the way up to speed.
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3. Sound out the pictures.
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Name what is in the jar, then add the printed word for one solid compound.
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Honeycomb. HONEY plus COMB joins into HONEYCOMB.
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4. Solve the word math.
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Cross the second word's letters out of the first word and read what survives.
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Pet. Take the CAR out of CARPET and a PET is left on the rug.
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5. Sound out the pictures.
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Name the picture, then attach the word beside it.
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Toothpick. TOOTH plus PICK joined together reads TOOTHPICK.
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6. Solve the word math.
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Subtract the letters of the second word from the first, in order.
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Car. Pull the ROT out of CARROT and drive away in a CAR.
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7. Sound out the pictures.
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Name the animal, then read the word printed next to it.
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Bear hug. BEAR plus HUG reads BEAR HUG, a big tight squeeze.
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8. Solve the word math.
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Remove every letter of the second word from the first and read the leftovers.
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Pump. PUMPKIN minus its KIN leaves the PUMP.
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9. Sound out the pictures.
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Name the tool, then attach the word after it.
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Sawdust. SAW plus DUST joined together reads SAWDUST.
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10. Solve the word math.
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Subtract the short word's letters from the long word and read what is left.
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Try. Remove the PAN from the PANTRY and all you can do is TRY.
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11. Say what you see.
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The word is written the wrong way round, going backwards. Put the direction word first, then the word itself.
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Backspace. SPACE is written backwards, so the space goes back: backspace.
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12. Solve the word math.
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The minus sign works on letters: strike the second word out of the first.
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Son. Drain the SEA from SEASON and a SON remains.
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13. Say what you see.
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Read the small word first, then say where it sits relative to the big one.
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A fly in the ointment. FLY is planted inside OINTMENT, which reads as a fly in the ointment.
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14. Solve the word math.
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Do the subtraction letter by letter and read the survivors in order.
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Bar. Subtract the GAIN from a BARGAIN and the BAR stays.
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15. Say what you see.
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Each number grabs one letter of the word: number 1 takes the first letter, and so on.
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Cat. Letters 1, 3, and 5 of CHART spell CAT.
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16. Say what you see.
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The printed word breaks off before its final letters arrive. Name the word it was going to be, and describe the state it was left in.
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Unfinished business. The word BUSINESS is cut off before its ending, leaving it unfinished: unfinished business.
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17. Say what you see.
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Count into the word: each digit points at one letter to keep.
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Moon. Letters 1, 2, 5, and 6 of MOTION rise as the MOON.
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18. Say what you see.
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The long word is buried inside the short one; where it is buried is the key word.
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A skeleton in the closet. SKELETON is hidden inside CLOSET, which reads as a skeleton in the closet.
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19. Say what you see.
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The digits are positions: pull out letter 1, letter 2, and so on.
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Frog. Letters 1, 2, 3, and 8 of FROSTING hop out as a FROG.
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20. Solve the word math.
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Cross out the second word's letters inside the first word.
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Ring. Take the EAR off an EARRING and keep the RING.
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21. Say what you see.
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Do not count the crowd exactly; the phrase just says there are more of them than the space can hold.
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Too many cooks in the kitchen. A crowd of COOKs is crammed inside KITCHEN: too many cooks in the kitchen.
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22. Say what you see.
Need a hint?
The numbers under the word pick out letters by position.
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Dog. Letters 1, 2, and 4 of DOUGH fetch a DOG.
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23. Say what you see.
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The digits are not a code to crack; just name what kind of characters surround the word.
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Safety in numbers. SAFETY sits inside a string of digits, so it is literally safety in numbers.
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24. Say what you see.
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Each number picks the letter sitting at that position in the word.
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Bee. Letters 1, 3, and 4 of BREEZE buzz out as a BEE.
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25. Solve the word math.
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The letters of the second word disappear from the first; the rest is the answer.
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Ache. Shave the MUST off a MUSTACHE and you are left with an ACHE.
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26. Say what you see.
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Each number below selects that letter of the word, in order.
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Star. Letters 1, 2, 3, and 5 of STAIRS shine as a STAR.
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27. Say what you see.
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The line through the letters is the whole clue; say what has been done to them.
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Fingers crossed. The word FINGERS is crossed out, so the fingers are crossed.
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28. Say what you see.
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Count how many times the same thing appears and say that count first.
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Double check. CHECK appears twice, so you check it double: double check.
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29. Say what you see.
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The three copies are a decoy; the circle picks out one position in the stack.
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Middle name. The circle marks the middle of the three NAMEs: middle name.
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30. Sound out the pictures.
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Say the frozen thing, then say where it is sitting inside the word.
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Ice in your veins. There is literal ice parked in VEINS, the coldest compliment in sports.
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31. Sound out the pictures.
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Say the animal, then its position relative to the word below it.
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A monkey on your back. The monkey is riding on BACK and absolutely refuses to climb down.
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32. Sound out the pictures.
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The hand tells you the action; the stack tells you where it is happening.
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The writing on the wall. The hand is writing on WALL, spelling out exactly how this ends.
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33. Read it out loud.
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Say each digit as a word, and read the arrow as a word too.
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Nine to five. Read the digits and the arrow out loud and you have clocked a full shift: nine to five.
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34. Sound out the pictures.
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Say what the figure is doing, then what it is doing it on top of.
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Walking on air. The stroller is walking right on top of AIR, which is exactly how good news feels.
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35. Sound out the pictures.
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Say the animals, then say where they are snuggled.
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Pigs in a blanket. Two pigs tucked inside BLANKET, cozy as a party appetizer.
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36. Sound out the pictures.
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Say the animal, then say where it has gotten stuck.
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A frog in your throat. A frog has moved into THROAT, which is why you keep clearing it.
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37. Read it out loud.
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Say the digit as a word, read the arrow as a word, and the rhyme completes itself.
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Zero to hero. The digit starts out as nothing and the arrow promotes it: zero to hero.
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38. Read it out loud.
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Read the arrow as two small words, then say what it is pointing at.
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To the moon. Read the arrow as TO THE and the whole card blasts off straight to the moon.
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39. Read it out loud.
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The letter is a sound, the pictures are exactly what they show, and the arrow is a word.
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See eye to eye. The letter C sounds like SEE, so the two of them finally agree: they see eye to eye.
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40. Read it out loud.
Need a hint?
Name the two identical pictures and read the arrow as the word between them.
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Door to door. One door leads straight to the next, which is exactly how the salesman likes it: door to door.
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FAQ about 40 Rebus Puzzles with Answers
Where are the answers to these rebus puzzles?
Every card carries its own answer together with the full decoding: which word sits where, what is missing or reversed, and what the arrangement sounds like out loud. Type a guess to check yourself first, then reveal to compare your reading with the intended one.
Are the answers explained?
Yes. Each explanation names the exact trick behind the phrase: stacking, as in MAN over BOARD reading man overboard, reversal, as in DESSERTS hiding stressed, or sound-alike numbers, as in 10SE reading tense. Over time those patterns become instant to spot.
Can I play without typing?
Yes. Recognition is real rebus practice, because picking the right phrase still forces you to decode the arrangement. Blitz turns the same puzzles into a sixty second multiple choice run, and Zen mode walks through them card by card with no timer.
Once you have checked your solutions, put your skills to the test with our collection of tricky rebus puzzles that will really make you think. When you are ready for more, explore the full rebus puzzles hub for fresh brain teasers across every difficulty and theme.