Riddles for First Graders

A comb.

A comb has a row of teeth like a jaw, so it fits without biting.

A clock.

A clock has pointing hands that move but cannot clap together.

Rain.

Rain drops fall from clouds yet water splashes down safely and stays fine.

A shoe.

The flap under a shoe's laces is called the tongue, but it cannot speak.

A stamp.

A stamp rides on a mailed letter everywhere yet sits stuck in one corner.

An egg.

You crack the shell open before eating, so you break an egg to use it.

A bottle.

A bottle's narrow top part is called its neck, but there is no head.

A sponge.

A sponge is full of tiny holes yet soaks up and holds water inside.

A book.

A book's back edge is called the spine and it is filled with pages.

Corn.

Corn grows in ears on the stalk, but those ears cannot actually hear.

A potato.

A potato has little bud spots called eyes, but they cannot see anything.

A needle.

A needle has one hole called an eye where thread passes through, not for seeing.

A turkey.

Turkey has key in it and turkey is the Thanksgiving bird, but no door key.

A river.

A river has a mouth and a riverbed but does not eat or sleep.

Your age.

Your age climbs one number each birthday and never counts back down.

Tape.

Tape comes off a roll, sticks on one side, and mends torn paper.

The stairs.

People walk up and down stairs all day yet the steps stay in place.

A table.

A table stands on four legs but cannot take a single step.

A coin.

A coin has a heads side and a tails side but no middle body.

A rubber band.

A rubber band is a band that stretches, not the kind that plays songs.

A straw.

A straw is thin and bends, carrying juice up from the cup to your lips.

A field of corn.

A cornfield is full of corn ears growing tall, but ears here cannot hear.

Your breath.

Your breath weighs almost nothing yet nobody can hold it very long.

Your hand.

Your hand shoots up to answer, and it is joined right onto your arm.

The letter R.

Spell March and April and the letter R sits in the middle, but May has none.

You're looking sharp!

A sharpened pencil looks sharp, which is also a way to say fancy or smart.

An achoo-choo train.

Achoo is the sneeze sound and choo-choo is the train, joined into one joke.

A mushroom.

Mushroom has the word room in it but is really a forest plant, no doors.

A cupcake! Cup plus cake.

Cup plus cake put together spell cupcake, a little cake with frosting.

A snowman! Snow plus man.

Snow plus man joined together make snowman, the figure you build outside.

A clocktower! Clock plus tower.

Clock plus tower joined together spell clocktower, a tall building with a clock.

A seahorse! Sea plus horse.

Sea plus horse joined together spell seahorse, the tiny ocean swimmer.

A pear

Change the b in bear to a p and you get pear, a green fruit.

A cow

Only the cow both moos and gives us milk, so it fits both clues.

10

Counting by twos after 8 lands on 10, the next even number.

A mirror.

A mirror shows your own face back at you, but it is not a picture.

An umbrella.

An umbrella pops open above your head to keep rain off you.

A bee.

A bee buzzes between flowers and makes sweet golden honey.

A butterfly.

A caterpillar changes and grows colorful wings, becoming a butterfly.

A snail.

A snail carries its shell house on its back and creeps along slowly.

A frog.

Green skin, hopping, and a ribbit sound all point straight to a frog.

A pillow.

Something soft you rest your sleepy head on at night is a pillow.

A rainbow.

A rainbow paints a curved band of colors after the rain.

The moon.

The moon glows at night and changes shape from full circle to thin sliver.

Ice.

Ice is cold and hard but melts into a puddle when it warms up.

A balloon.

Filled with air it floats, and one poke pops it, so it is a balloon.

A ladybug.

A little red beetle dotted with black spots is known as a ladybug.

A spider.

Eight legs plus spinning a sticky web point straight to a spider.

A cloud.

White and puffy, floating high and sometimes bringing rain, is a cloud.

A broom.

Bristles and a long handle that sweep the floor make a broom.

A fish.

A water animal that breathes with gills while swimming is a fish.

A towel.

A towel dries you off, so it soaks up more water and gets wetter as it works.

A glove.

A glove has a thumb and four fingers to fit your hand, but it is not living.

A chair.

A chair stands on four legs and holds you when you sit, but it cannot walk.

A bed.

A bed has a foot at the end and four legs, and it is where you sleep.

Light.

Light spreads and fills the room, yet it takes up no space you can touch.

A newspaper.

A newspaper is printed in black and white and is read all over by many people.

A candle.

A candle melts down as its flame burns, so it gets shorter the longer it stays lit.

A library.

A library is full of books, and every book tells a story, so it holds the most stories.

A gummy bear.

A bear with no teeth has only gums, and a gummy bear is also a squishy candy.

To the moo-vies.

Cows say moo, and moo plus vies sounds just like the movies.

Sneakers.

Spies sneak around quietly, and sneakers are shoes named for sneaking.

Purr-ple.

A happy cat purrs, and purr plus ple sounds like the color purple.

A carrot.

Carrot rhymes with parrot and is an orange vegetable, so it fits both clues.

A monkey.

Monkey has the word key hiding in it, and monkeys love to peel bananas.

It saw the salad dressing.

The tomato blushed red because it saw the salad getting dressed.

A puddle.

A snowman melts in the summer heat and turns into a puddle of water.

A bat.

A bat is a flying animal, and a bat is also what players swing to hit the ball.

A maybe.

A bee that keeps saying maybe cannot decide, and may plus bee sounds like maybe.

They use honeycombs.

Bees live in honeycombs, and a comb is also what you use to fix your hair.

A fence.

A fence runs around the edge of a yard, but it stays standing still the whole time.

Silence.

The moment you speak, the quiet is gone, so saying silence breaks the silence.

To have sweet dreams.

Sugar is sweet, and he wanted his dreams to be sweet dreams too.

To get to high school.

A ladder helps you climb high, and high school is the name for an older kids' school.

It was feeling crumby.

Cookies are made of crumbs, and crumby sounds like crummy, which means not so good.

It was not peeling well.

You peel a banana, and peeling sounds like feeling, so it was not feeling well.

A fsh.

Take the letter i out of fish, since i sounds like eye, and you are left with fsh.

A cold.

You can catch a cold and get sniffly, but you cannot throw a cold like a ball.

a dandelion

A dandelion has the word 'lion' in it, but it is really a small yellow flower that cannot roar.

a sandwich

A sandwich sounds like it hides the word 'witch', but it is really something yummy for lunch.

a cupcake

A cupcake has the word 'cup' in it, but it is a little cake, so it cannot hold water.

a belly button

A belly button is the little dot on your tummy, not a button you can press.

a nightmare

A nightmare hides the word 'mare', which is a lady horse, but it is really a bad dream at night.