Harry Potter Riddles
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Grab your wand and think like a Ravenclaw. These original riddles with answers are inspired by the wizarding world, from sphinx style word puzzles to harry potter trivia about spells and potions. Guess first, then tap the card to see how you did.
Harry Potter riddles: the clue is a fact from the books, not a pun
Almost every card hands you two or three details from the seven novels and asks which object, creature or person they belong to. No pun, no second meaning. The bezoar really is a stone from a goat's stomach, the Knight Bus really is purple and triple-decker, and the castle does have a hundred and forty-two staircases. Treat the first clue as a fact to place, not a joke to decode, then ask which scene it came from.
Look for the single detail no other candidate shares. A bird that delivers mail could be a pigeon until the dead mouse rules it out. A beast that is half eagle could be a griffin until half horse removes it. A witch who turns into an animal sounds like a werewolf until you reach at will, since a werewolf gets no say in it. Hold the first guess loosely; the second clue does the sorting.
Film watchers know most of the Easy cards on sight: the Snitch, the Sorting Hat and Gringotts look the same on screen. The Medium tier already slips past them, since the bronze eagle knocker that wants reasoning, not a password, never reached the films, and neither did the tipsy house-elf. The Hard tier leans harder on print, down to the poltergeist who answers to the Bloody Baron. For riddles that turn on contradiction rather than fact, the Hobbit riddles use the form Bilbo and Gollum traded, and the famous riddles gather the classics everyone meets.
- Riddle 6: most people say A pigeon. Pigeons carried letters for centuries, so a mail bird sounds like one. A dead mouse is the detail that removes it: pigeons eat seed, and the bird that hunts mice by night is the one wizards trust with the post.
- Riddle 34: most people say A ghost. Gliding without feet is exactly how the castle ghosts move, so the guess is fair. Feed is the word that rules them out, since Nearly Headless Nick cannot eat at all, while the hooded creature lives on stolen happiness.
- Riddle 41: most people say A magpie. A creature that steals rings and coins sounds like the thieving bird of folklore. Dig is the word that removes it: a magpie snatches and flies, while the soft burrower in Hagrid's lesson tunnels straight through a lawn for gold.
- Riddle 42: most people say A griffin. Half eagle brings the griffin to mind first, since it is the older and better known beast. Half horse rules it out, because a griffin's hindquarters belong to a lion, and only the bowing beast from Hagrid's first lesson carries hooves.
Place each clue in a scene from the books before you guess, then let the next clue cut the candidates down to one.
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1. I'm a tiny golden ball with silver wings, worth more points than anything else on the pitch, and the game ends the moment I'm caught. What am I? Easy
Most people first say: The Quaffle
Show answer
The Golden Snitch.
Four balls fly in a Quidditch match, and only the Quaffle scores a goal, ten points with play carrying on. Ending the match on capture is the contrast that names the tiny gold one, whose catch is worth a hundred and fifty.
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2. I hang on the castle walls, but don't count on finding me at home. I like to wander off and visit my neighbors' frames. What am I? Medium
Show answer
A wizarding portrait.
Wander off and visit my neighbors' frames is the pivot: a painted subject at Hogwarts can step out of its canvas into the picture next door, leaving the wall hanging empty.
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3. I judge a thousand minds a year, yet I never leave my stool. Put me on and I'll shout where you belong. What am I? Easy
Show answer
The Sorting Hat.
Put me on narrows the field to something worn, and shouts where you belong recalls the ceremony where a hat calls out a house name for every first year. The stool is where it waits between songs.
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4. Look into me and you won't see your face. You'll see your deepest wish instead, and the happiest person alive sees only himself. What am I? Medium
Need a hint?
Read its name backward, roughly.
Show answer
The Mirror of Erised.
Two facts carry this one. Dumbledore tells Harry that the happiest man alive would look into this glass and see only himself, and the odd name is desire written backward, which the deepest wish line echoes.
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5. You can walk straight through me at King's Cross station, but only if you don't stop to think about the bricks. What am I? Easy
Show answer
The barrier to Platform Nine and Three Quarters.
Bricks are the pivot. Muggle logic says a solid wall stops you, and the book's trick is that hesitation, not the wall, is the obstacle: walk at it with confidence and the station lets you through.
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6. I deliver the mail but I'm no postman, and I'd trade my whole route for one dead mouse. What am I? Easy
Most people first say: A pigeon
Show answer
A post owl.
Carrier pigeons deliver letters too, so the mail line alone leaves two birds standing. Trading the route for a dead mouse picks the hunter of the pair, and in the wizarding world that hunter also runs the post.
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7. I'm a bank with no human tellers, buried deep under London, where a dragon might guard your gold. What am I? Easy
Show answer
Gringotts.
No human tellers is the narrowing clue: goblins run the counters. Deep under London and a dragon on guard match the vaults Hagrid describes on Harry's first visit, where the deepest ones hold the biggest fortunes.
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8. I become the thing you fear the most, and the only weapon that beats me is a good laugh. What am I? Medium
Need a hint?
Riddikulus!
Show answer
A boggart.
Becomes your worst fear rules out any creature with a fixed shape of its own. Laughter as the only weapon is the fact Lupin teaches in third year: force the shape into something silly and the thing loses its grip.
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9. Drink me and your best friends will swear they've never met you. One hair is my secret ingredient. What am I? Medium
Show answer
Polyjuice Potion.
One hair does the narrowing. Among the brews Hermione manages, this is the one that needs a piece of the person you want to become, and friends swearing they never met you is the disguise working as intended.
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10. I'm a blank piece of parchment until you swear you're up to no good, and then I'll show you every corridor and every wandering footstep. What am I? Medium
Need a hint?
Mischief managed.
Show answer
The Marauder's Map.
Swear you're up to no good paraphrases the map's password, and wandering footstep names the labeled dots that show where every person in the castle stands. Blank parchment is only its resting state.
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11. Throw me over your shoulders and even your shoes vanish. I've been handed down as a very useful heirloom. What am I? Easy
Show answer
The invisibility cloak.
Shoes vanish too tells you the hiding covers whatever the fabric drapes, not just the wearer, and handed down as an heirloom recalls Dumbledore's note in the first book: it belonged to Harry's father before him.
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12. I'm the only tree on the grounds that hits back. What am I? Medium
Show answer
The Whomping Willow.
Hits back is the whole clue. One tree on the grounds swings its branches at anything that comes near, planted to guard the tunnel Lupin used as a student.
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13. Every other common room wants a password. I only want a clever answer. What am I? Medium
Need a hint?
Its bronze knocker asks a riddle.
Show answer
The door to the Ravenclaw common room.
Every other common room wants a password sets up the contrast, and clever answer is the exception: one house entrance carries a bronze eagle knocker that poses a question and opens when you reason it out.
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14. I'm the smallest letter with the loudest voice. Open me quickly and cover your ears, or I'll only get angrier. What am I? Medium
Show answer
A Howler.
Loudest voice on the smallest letter describes a red envelope that screams its message aloud, and get angrier is the warning Neville gives while Ron's arrives: his gran once sent one, he ignored it, and it grew far worse.
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15. The Ravenclaw door might ask: what belongs to you, yet other people use it far more than you do? Easy
Most people first say: Your money
Show answer
Your name.
Belongs to you invites a hunt for a possession you can hold, and that assumption is the trick. Something you own can also be a label: other people say it every day to call you, while you rarely say it aloud.
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16. A sphinx might ask: my first is the opposite of day, my second is a female horse, and together I gallop through your sleep. What am I? Medium
Need a hint?
Night, then mare.
Show answer
A nightmare.
A charade built from parts, the sphinx style. Opposite of day gives one syllable, a female horse gives the other, and gallop through your sleep describes the joined word rather than an actual animal.
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17. I have a hundred and forty-two staircases, and they refuse to stay where you left them. What am I? Medium
Show answer
Hogwarts castle.
Hundred and forty-two is the count Harry learns in his first week, and refuse to stay where you left them describes staircases that swing to a different landing while you climb. Moving stairs belong to one building in the series.
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18. I'm a dragon's breath and a common room's comfort. Feed me and I grow. Give me water and I die. What am I? Easy
Most people first say: A dragon
Show answer
Fire.
Feed me and I grow reads like an animal, and water kills me breaks that reading, since animals drink. The wizarding dressing is decoration: a dragon breathes it and a common room hearth holds it.
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19. I have three heads, terrible breath, and a soft spot for music that puts me right to sleep. What am I? Medium
Show answer
Fluffy, the three-headed dog.
Music that puts me to sleep is the weakness Hagrid lets slip to a hooded stranger, and three heads narrows the guard dogs of the series to the one under the trapdoor in the first book.
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20. I'm the room you can only find when you really, truly need me. Walk past three times and think hard. What am I? Medium
Show answer
The Room of Requirement.
Walk past three times and think hard is the actual instruction for opening it: pace the seventh floor corridor with a need in mind and a door appears in a blank wall. Truly need me rules out every fixed classroom.
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21. You don't pick me. I pick you, and Mr. Ollivander remembers every match I've ever made. What am I? Easy
Show answer
A wand.
I pick you turns Ollivander's rule into a riddle: he insists the choice runs from the shop's stock to the wizard, and remembers every match is his boast about recalling everything he ever sold.
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22. Which creature makes Harry answer a riddle in the Triwizard maze? Medium
Show answer
A sphinx
In Goblet of Fire she guards the quickest path to the cup and will not move until Harry answers her rhyme. A centaur, a goblin and a dementor all appear in the series, but none of them sets a puzzle.
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23. How do students get into the Ravenclaw common room? Medium
Show answer
By answering a riddle
A bronze eagle knocker asks a question and swings open when the answer satisfies it, so the whole house talks its way in. Tapping bricks opens the Diagon Alley archway, and tickling the pear opens the kitchens.
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24. Which potion gives the drinker a run of pure good luck? Medium
Show answer
Felix Felicis
Slughorn offers a tiny bottle of liquid luck as the prize for the best Draught of Living Death, and Harry wins it with the Prince's notes. Polyjuice changes your shape, Amortentia is a love potion, Veritaserum drags out the truth.
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25. What does the spell Lumos do? Easy
Show answer
Lights the wand tip
Lumos lights the wand tip and Nox puts it out again. Unlocking is Alohomora, floating is Wingardium Leviosa, and disarming is Expelliarmus, so only the first choice matches the incantation.
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26. Which platform does the Hogwarts Express leave from? Easy
Show answer
Nine and three quarters
The Hogwarts Express leaves from a platform hidden between the Muggle nine and ten, behind a barrier that looks like solid brick. Ten, seven and a half, and thirteen are ordinary numbers with no train behind them.
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27. Hermione's cat is named Crookshanks. Easy
Show answer
True.
Hermione buys the bandy-legged ginger cat at the Magical Menagerie before third year, and he spends that year growling at Ron's rat, which turns out to be a hiding wizard.
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28. The Sorting Hat once belonged to Salazar Slytherin. Medium
Show answer
False.
The hat came off Godric Gryffindor's own head, and the four founders charmed it so it could pick students for them once they were gone. Slytherin's relics in the story are a locket and a basilisk.
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29. A Patronus takes the form of an animal. Easy
Show answer
True.
A fully formed Patronus takes a silver animal shape that fits the caster: Harry's is a stag, Hermione's an otter, Ron's a terrier. A weaker one comes out as silver mist with no shape at all.
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30. ⚡ + 👦 Easy
Need a hint?
Check the forehead.
Show answer
The Boy Who Lived (Harry Potter and his lightning scar).
Read the bolt as a scar, not the weather. Lightning marked on a boy's forehead is the series' most famous detail, and the pair of pictures names the title Harry earned by surviving the curse that made it.
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31. 🦉 + ✉️ Easy
Need a hint?
It's how wizard mail arrives.
Show answer
Owl post (a Hogwarts letter delivered by owl).
Two pictures, one delivery system: the bird is the carrier and the envelope is the cargo. In the wizarding world owls bring letters, so read them together as a method of mail, not as a pet beside a card.
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32. 🐍 + 🏠 Easy
Need a hint?
Its emblem is a serpent.
Show answer
Slytherin house (snake + house).
Here the building means a school house, and the snake is its badge. Pair the animal with the word house and you get the name of the founder's serpent-emblem group in green and silver.
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33. Turn me a few careful times and yesterday afternoon opens up again, but whatever you do, never let anyone see two of you at once. What am I? Medium
Show answer
A Time-Turner.
Turn me a few careful times gives the mechanism, each turn winding back one hour, and never let anyone see two of you is Hermione's warning from third year, when she and Harry hide from their earlier selves.
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34. I glide without feet and feed without a mouth, and one happy memory is the last thing I'll ever leave you. What am I? Medium
Most people first say: A ghost
Show answer
A dementor.
Glide without feet fits a ghost as well, so that clue narrows nothing. Feed without a mouth removes it, because the castle ghosts eat nothing, while one hooded creature drains happiness from anyone nearby until bad memories are all that remain.
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35. Toss a pinch of me into the fire, step into the green flames, and say where you're going clearly, or you'll tumble out of the wrong grate. What am I? Medium
Show answer
Floo powder.
Green flames narrows the whole fireplace network to one substance, and tumble out of the wrong grate recalls Harry's first try, when a mouthful of ash garbled the name and he landed in Knockturn Alley.
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36. I look like a rusty old boot no one would bother to pick up, but touch me at the right second and I'll yank you across the country by the navel. What am I? Medium
Show answer
A Portkey.
Rusty old boot is the disguise from the Quidditch World Cup morning, and yank you by the navel is how the books describe the pull. An enchanted piece of junk that teleports on schedule has one name.
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37. Stick out your wand arm on a dark street and I'll bang to a halt, purple and triple-decker, ready to fling you between the beds inside. What am I? Medium
Show answer
The Knight Bus.
Wand arm on a dark street is the summoning gesture, and purple and triple-decker leaves no other vehicle in the series. Beds inside recalls the ride where Harry's bedstead slid across the floor at every turn.
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38. I burst into flame on my worst day and crawl out of the ashes as a chick. My tears can heal a deadly wound, and I stay loyal to a good headmaster. What am I? Medium
Show answer
A phoenix.
Crawl out of the ashes as a chick is the rebirth Harry witnesses in Dumbledore's office on a Burning Day, and tears that heal is the fact that saves him from basilisk venom. Both belong to one bird.
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39. I'm a small brown stone taken from the stomach of a goat, and swallowing me will save you from most any poison. What am I? Medium
Show answer
A bezoar.
Stomach of a goat is straight from Snape's first Potions lesson, the question Harry cannot answer, and saves you from most poisons is the same stone Harry later shoves down Ron's throat. Nothing else in the series fits both.
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40. Repot me with earmuffs on, because my scream is deadly until I'm fully grown. Mashed up, I can wake those who've been petrified. What am I? Medium
Show answer
A Mandrake.
Earmuffs narrows to one Herbology lesson, the repotting class where Sprout hands out ear protection against the cry. Wake those who've been petrified names the restorative draught brewed from the mature plant in the second book.
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41. I'm soft and harmless until something shiny catches my eye, then I'll dig up every coin, ring, and gold watch you own. What am I? Medium
Most people first say: A magpie
Show answer
A Niffler.
Digs up shiny things fits a magpie, the bird folklore blames for stolen rings, so the guess is fair. Soft and harmless plus digging tips it to a burrowing creature, the fluffy treasure hunter Hagrid brings to class.
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42. Bow to me first and mean it, and I might let you climb on my back. Insult me and you'll regret it. I'm half eagle and half horse. What am I? Medium
Most people first say: A griffin
Show answer
A Hippogriff.
Eagle up front suggests a griffin, the older beast people name first. Half horse rules it out, since a griffin's back half is a lion, and bow to me first is the etiquette Hagrid drills before anyone touches Buckbeak.
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43. I'm a glass ball that fills with red smoke the moment you've forgotten something, though I'm never any help at telling you what. What am I? Medium
Show answer
A Remembrall.
Red smoke when you have forgotten something is Neville's gift from his gran, and never any help at telling you what is the book's joke, since Neville cannot recall what slipped his mind.
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44. Order me at the Three Broomsticks. I'm warm, foamy, and barely magical, though I'd still leave a house-elf tipsy. What am I? Medium
Show answer
Butterbeer.
Leave a house-elf tipsy is the narrowing fact: Winky drinks herself into a stupor on something humans treat as harmless. Warm, foamy and sold at the Three Broomsticks describes what Harry first tastes on the Hogsmeade trip he sneaks into under the cloak.
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45. Eat me before I leap off the trolley, but save the card tucked inside, because a famous witch or wizard is waiting to be collected. What am I? Easy
Show answer
A Chocolate Frog.
Chase the card, not the hop. A trolley sweet that jumps is strange enough, but a wrapper holding a collectible portrait of a famous witch or wizard names one thing: Harry's first card shows Dumbledore, and Ron is still hunting Agrippa.
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46. Every color is a gamble with me. You might taste cherry, you might taste earwax, and one flavor really is straight-up vomit. What am I? Medium
Show answer
Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans.
Earwax and vomit narrow this to one sweet, the beans Dumbledore complains about at the end of the first book, and every color is a gamble describes a bag where the wrapper promises nothing.
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47. To make me, a dark wizard tears his own soul in two and hides a piece inside an object, so that killing his body is never enough. What am I? Hard
Need a hint?
Tom Riddle's diary was the first one Harry destroyed.
Show answer
A Horcrux.
Tears his own soul in two names the act, murder, that splits a soul, and hides a piece inside an object gives the vessel. Killing his body is never enough describes why Voldemort survived Godric's Hollow.
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48. I'm the monster of the Chamber, and a single look into my eyes is your last, so the castle pipes were the perfect place for me to slither and hunt. What am I? Medium
Show answer
A Basilisk.
A single look is your last identifies the king of serpents, whose direct gaze kills, and the castle pipes explain how it crossed Hogwarts unseen while Hermione worked out the route on a torn page.
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49. I'm a rough wooden cup crowned with blue-white flames, and once I spit out a name, that champion is bound by a contract they cannot break. What am I? Medium
Show answer
The Goblet of Fire.
Blue-white flames on a rough wooden cup is how the fourth book introduces the impartial judge, and a contract they cannot break is the binding rule Dumbledore invokes when Harry's name comes out of it.
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50. Pour a silvery strand of memory into my stone basin, then lower your face to the surface and relive the whole moment exactly as it happened. What am I? Medium
Show answer
The Pensieve.
Silvery strand of memory is the substance you draw from a temple with a wand, and stone basin is the container in Dumbledore's office. Relive the whole moment describes what Harry sees when he falls in.
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51. I'm the eldest of three brothers' gifts and the most powerful wand ever made, yet I stay loyal only to whoever last defeated my owner. What am I? Medium
Show answer
The Elder Wand.
Eldest of the three brothers' gifts places it first in the Hallows tale, and loyal to the last victor is the rule the seventh book turns on: Grindelwald lost it to Dumbledore, Draco disarmed Dumbledore, Harry disarmed Draco.
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52. Play me and the pieces march on their own, smashing one another to rubble whenever they capture. Ron happens to be rather brilliant at me. What am I? Medium
Show answer
Wizard's chess.
Pieces march on their own and smash one another tells you the board is enchanted, and Ron being brilliant at it is the fact behind the giant game under the trapdoor, where he plays a knight and sacrifices himself.
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53. I'm one of a matching pair, and whatever you shut inside me steps out of my twin, no matter how many miles apart the two of us stand. What am I? Medium
Show answer
A Vanishing Cabinet.
Steps out of my twin is the mechanism Draco exploits in the sixth book: repair the broken one at Hogwarts and its partner at Borgin and Burkes becomes a secret door for Death Eaters. Miles apart rules out an ordinary wardrobe.
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54. I'm a snowy white owl, a birthday gift from Hagrid, and I carry Harry's letters across the country. Who am I? Easy
Show answer
Hedwig.
Birthday gift from Hagrid is the fact that pins it: the snowy owl comes from Eeylops Owl Emporium on Harry's eleventh birthday, and the name is one Harry finds in his History of Magic textbook.
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55. Free me with a single sock and I'll be the most loyal friend you ever had, though I once served a cruel wizard family. Who am I? Easy
Show answer
Dobby.
A single sock is the loophole: a house-elf is freed when its masters give it clothing, and Harry tricks Lucius Malfoy into handing one over. Cruel wizard family names the Malfoys without naming them.
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56. I keep the keys and grounds at Hogwarts, I'm half giant, and I have a soft spot for dangerous pets. Who am I? Easy
Show answer
Hagrid.
Keys and grounds is his own introduction on the hut-on-the-rock night: Keeper of Keys and Grounds at Hogwarts. Half giant is the secret Rita Skeeter prints in the fourth book, and dangerous pets covers Norbert, Fluffy and Aragog.
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57. My emblem is a lion, my colors are scarlet and gold, and I welcome the brave at heart. Which house am I? Easy
Show answer
Gryffindor.
Three markers land on one house: the lion on its crest, scarlet and gold on the scarves, and the brave at heart, which is how the Sorting Hat's song names it. The other houses pair a different animal with different colors.
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58. Play me on flying broomsticks with four balls in the air, and catching the smallest one usually wins the match. What sport am I? Easy
Show answer
Quidditch.
Four balls in the air is the count that identifies the sport: one Quaffle, two Bludgers and the Snitch. Catching the smallest one usually wins is the 150 point rule, and usually is honest, since a big enough lead can still beat it.
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59. Most wizards are too scared to say my real name, so they whisper You Know Who instead. Who am I? Easy
Show answer
Lord Voldemort.
Whisper You Know Who instead is the habit of an entire society: after the first war most wizards still refuse to speak the name, and Dumbledore is the one who tells Harry that fear of a name feeds fear of the thing itself.
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60. Swish, flick, and pronounce me just right, and a feather drifts up off the desk. Hermione insists it is levi-O-sa. What spell am I? Easy
Show answer
Wingardium Leviosa.
Swish and flick is Flitwick's wand motion for the levitation charm, and Hermione's pronunciation lecture to Ron is the scene that fixes the spell in every reader's memory, right before the troll in the bathroom.
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61. Point me at a locked door, say the word, and the bolt clicks open by itself. What spell am I? Easy
Show answer
Alohomora.
Bolt clicks open by itself points at a charm rather than a key. Hermione casts the unlocking spell on the third floor corridor door, which is how the trio meets Fluffy.
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62. I've got red hair, a crowd of brothers, and a pet rat who turns out to be more than he seems. I'm Harry's first friend on the train. Who am I? Easy
Show answer
Ron Weasley.
Pet rat who turns out to be more than he seems is the narrowing fact: Scabbers is Peter Pettigrew in hiding for twelve years. Red hair and a crowd of brothers fits every sibling in that family, so the rat picks the one.
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63. I flew to a trapped boy in the Chamber, blinded a deadly serpent with my claws, and my tears sealed his poisoned wound. Only a great headmaster could truly summon me. Who am I? Hard
Need a hint?
Dumbledore's pet bird, the one that bursts into flame.
Show answer
Fawkes.
Blinded a deadly serpent with my claws is the exact move in the Chamber, where the phoenix punctures the basilisk's eyes so its gaze cannot kill. Only a great headmaster could summon me refers to loyalty to Dumbledore calling the bird.
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64. I served the Dark Lord as pet, spy, and one of his hidden soul-pieces, though I was once a woman bound by a lifelong curse. Who am I? Hard
Need a hint?
The snake, not the Dark Lord himself.
Show answer
Nagini.
Pet, spy and hidden soul-piece describe the snake at Voldemort's side, the last Horcrux, killed by Neville with the sword. The cursed woman line comes from the prequel films rather than the seven novels, so weigh the first three clues.
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65. Dumbledore left me to Ron in his will. I click a whole street's lights out into myself, but my truest gift is guiding a lost friend home by a voice in a ball of light. What am I? Hard
Need a hint?
Dumbledore clicked it on Privet Drive in chapter one.
Show answer
The Deluminator.
Click a whole street's lights out is the Put-Outer from the very first chapter, and voice in a ball of light is the added power the seventh book reveals: Hermione's voice leads Ron back to the tent.
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66. Hagrid raised me from an egg and hid me in a cupboard, and by the end I led a whole colony of my kind deep in the Forbidden Forest. Who am I? Hard
Need a hint?
Ron's least favorite creature, and it has eight legs.
Show answer
Aragog.
Raised from an egg and hid in a cupboard is the story that got Hagrid expelled, since Riddle framed the spider for the Chamber attacks. Colony deep in the Forbidden Forest is where Ron faces his worst fear.
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67. Turn me thrice in your hand and the dead return as shadows, close but never truly back. I hid inside a cracked ring and later inside a Snitch. What am I? Hard
Need a hint?
The second of the three Hallows, the one Cadmus took.
Show answer
The Resurrection Stone.
Turn me thrice in your hand is the instruction Harry follows in the forest, and cracked ring then a Snitch traces the stone's path: set in the Gaunt ring, then sealed in the Snitch Dumbledore left him.
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68. I'm the curse Harry finds scrawled For Enemies in a borrowed potions book, and I slash invisible wounds as if from a sword. What spell am I? Hard
Need a hint?
Snape invented it and Harry used it on Draco.
Show answer
Sectumsempra.
Scrawled For Enemies is the label in the margin of the Prince's textbook, and slash invisible wounds as if from a sword describes what happens to Draco in the bathroom when Harry tries it without knowing.
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69. I scribbled better instructions than any textbook in the margins of a used Potions book, and my odd nickname joined my mother's maiden name to a royal word. Who am I? Hard
Need a hint?
Snape's own schoolboy nickname, written in his Potions textbook.
Show answer
The Half-Blood Prince.
Mother's maiden name joined to a royal word is a family tree clue: Snape's mother was Eileen Prince, and his father was a Muggle, which makes the first half of the nickname literal about his blood.
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70. Long before the newest Dark Lord rose, I hunted the Hallows in the name of the greater good, until my old friend Dumbledore beat me in a legendary duel. Who am I? Hard
Need a hint?
Dumbledore's old friend, defeated in 1945.
Show answer
Gellert Grindelwald.
Greater good is the slogan Rita Skeeter's book digs up from letters between two teenage friends, and beat me in a legendary duel is the 1945 fight the chocolate frog card mentions in the first book.
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71. I'm a lost crown said to sharpen the mind, twisted into a soul-piece by the Dark Lord and buried among the junk of a hidden room. What am I? Hard
Need a hint?
A founder's lost headpiece, hidden with a bust.
Show answer
Ravenclaw's Diadem.
Lost crown said to sharpen the mind is Rowena's tiara, missing for centuries, and junk of a hidden room is the Room of Requirement in its storage form, where Harry once stashed the Prince's textbook right beside it.
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72. I'm a small golden cup stamped with a badger, multiplied by burning gold in a deep bank vault, and I cradle a shard of a broken soul. What am I? Hard
Need a hint?
Helga's heirloom, stolen from the Lestrange vault on a dragon.
Show answer
Hufflepuff's Cup.
Stamped with a badger names the founder, and multiplied by burning gold describes the Gemino and Flagrante curses in the Lestrange vault, where every touched object copies itself and scorches until the trio nearly drowns in treasure.
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73. A brave elf and his master stole me from a cave, a note signed R.A.B. sat where the real me belonged, and I hung heavy and cold around each hunter's neck. What am I? Hard
Need a hint?
Umbridge wore it before the trio got it back.
Show answer
Slytherin's Locket.
Brave elf and his master fixes the thieves as Kreacher and Regulus, and a note signed R.A.B. is the fake left in the cave for Voldemort to find. Heavy and cold around each hunter's neck is the real one souring the trio's moods.
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74. I muttered insults under my breath, guarded the Black family's darkest secrets, and turned gentle only once someone handed me my late young master's locket. Who am I? Hard
Need a hint?
The mumbling house-elf at Grimmauld Place.
Show answer
Kreacher.
Late young master's locket is the pivot: Regulus was the master, and the locket is the fake from the cave, which Harry gives the elf to keep. Darkest secrets marks him as the house-elf of Grimmauld Place.
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75. Force two wands that share a single core to duel, and this rare effect binds them in golden light, making one spit out ghostly echoes of its last spells. What am I? Hard
Need a hint?
It happened in the graveyard at the end of book four.
Show answer
Priori Incantatem.
Wands that share a single core is the brother wand fact Ollivander states about Harry's and Voldemort's phoenix feathers, both from Fawkes. Ghostly echoes of its last spells is what pours out in the graveyard duel.
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76. I'm a skeletal winged horse who pulls the school carriages, yet only those who have watched someone die can see me at all. What am I? Hard
Need a hint?
Harry first saw them after Cedric's death.
Show answer
A Thestral.
Watched someone die is the rule Hagrid lays out in his lesson, and pulls the school carriages is the shock of fifth year: Harry, who saw Cedric killed, suddenly finds horses where nothing seemed to pull before.
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77. No spell can banish me, I drop water balloons and unscrew the chandeliers, and only the Bloody Baron and a pair of red-haired twins ever earn my respect. What am I? Hard
Need a hint?
Not a ghost but a poltergeist, and Filch's enemy.
Show answer
Peeves.
Bloody Baron and a pair of red-haired twins narrows it fast: the poltergeist obeys the Slytherin ghost and salutes Fred and George on the day they fly out. No spell can banish me is why Filch is stuck with him.
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78. Brewed correctly and swallowed each night before the full moon, I let a cursed man keep his human mind while his body still changes. What am I? Hard
Need a hint?
Snape brewed it for Lupin every month.
Show answer
The Wolfsbane Potion.
Keep his human mind while his body still changes is the effect Lupin describes in third year: Snape brews the goblet for him each month, and forgetting one dose on the Shrieking Shack night is what turns the ending violent.
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79. I'm a witch or wizard who trained, at real risk, to turn into one particular animal at will, and the Ministry insists I register. What am I? Hard
Need a hint?
McGonagall becomes a tabby cat; the Marauders did this unregistered.
Show answer
An Animagus.
One particular animal at will separates this from a werewolf, whose change is forced, and the Ministry insists I register is the list McGonagall is on and the Marauders dodged. Trained, at real risk, names the difficulty they hid from school.
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80. Forged by goblins and set with rubies, I appear to a true Gryffindor in need, and because I only absorb what strengthens me, I now shatter soul-jars. What am I? Hard
Need a hint?
Neville pulled it out of the Sorting Hat.
Show answer
The Sword of Gryffindor.
Only absorb what strengthens me is the goblin-made property that matters: after piercing the basilisk the blade holds venom that kills Horcruxes. Appears to a true Gryffindor in need is how Neville pulls it from the Hat in the last battle.
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81. Squeezed unseen between two ordinary London houses, number twelve became the secret headquarters of the Order and a mansion crammed with dark heirlooms. What am I? Hard
Need a hint?
Sirius's childhood home, hidden by the Fidelius Charm.
Show answer
Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place.
Squeezed unseen between two ordinary houses is the Fidelius Charm at work, with Muggle neighbors never noticing the numbers skip. Dark heirlooms names the Black collection Mrs Weasley makes the kids clear out in the fifth book.
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82. In this quiet village you'll find a famous graveyard, a ruined cottage, and the very spot where a baby survived a killing curse one Halloween night. What am I? Hard
Need a hint?
The village where Harry's parents died.
Show answer
Godric's Hollow.
Baby survived a killing curse one Halloween night gives the date, and ruined cottage plus graveyard fits the village Harry and Hermione visit on Christmas Eve to find the Potters' grave.
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83. Add a sopophorous bean crushed rather than cut, and I become a sleeping potion so deep the drinker seems truly dead. What am I? Hard
Need a hint?
Snape's first-lesson question: asphodel and wormwood.
Show answer
The Draught of Living Death.
Crushed rather than cut is the Prince's marginal note that beats the printed recipe, since crushing the bean releases more juice. Seems truly dead describes the sleep this brew causes, the potion Snape asked about in Harry's first lesson.
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84. I'm the most dangerous potion in the room, a mother-of-pearl brew whose spiraling steam smells like whatever each person loves the most. What am I? Hard
Need a hint?
The strongest love potion, shown in Slughorn's first class.
Show answer
Amortentia.
Smells like whatever each person loves is the property Slughorn demonstrates, and Hermione's blush at what she smells is the joke. Mother-of-pearl sheen and spiraling steam are its two visible markers, and most dangerous is Slughorn's own warning.
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85. Three careful drops of me and you will answer any question with the plain truth, whether you meant to or not. What am I? Hard
Need a hint?
Snape threatened to slip it into Harry's pumpkin juice.
Show answer
Veritaserum.
Three careful drops is the dose Snape threatens Harry with in fourth year, and the plain truth is the sole effect. Whether you meant to or not marks the difference from an ordinary confession: the drinker cannot hold anything back.
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86. I was Sirius's younger brother and a marked follower who lost his nerve. I stole the real locket, left a note signed with my initials, and died alone in a cave. Who am I? Hard
Need a hint?
The initials on the locket note.
Show answer
Regulus Black.
Lost his nerve is the key phrase: a Death Eater who turned on Voldemort after his elf came home half dead from the cave. Kreacher is the one who finally tells the trio what the initials mean.
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87. I'm burned into a follower's forearm to call him to his master, and I'm flung into the sky as a green skull with a serpent for a tongue wherever the killers have struck. What am I? Hard
Need a hint?
Winky was found under it after the World Cup.
Show answer
The Dark Mark.
Burned into a follower's forearm and flung into the sky are the same symbol in two forms: a brand that summons Death Eaters when touched, and the skull Winky is found beneath after the World Cup. Serpent for a tongue is the visual detail.
Wizarding riddles with answers
Most of the set describes magical creatures, objects and places the Ravenclaw door way: a clever clue, one right answer, tap to check.
Harry potter trivia questions
Multiple choice and true or false cards test what you actually remember about spells, houses and the castle. No riddle logic required, just fan knowledge.
Emoji puzzles from the wizarding world
Three cards spell out magical things in emoji. Sound the pictures out and the answer appears.
Your score
FAQ about Harry Potter Riddles
Are these riddles taken from the Harry Potter books?
No. The novels hold only a handful of riddles, among them Snape's verse guarding the potion room and the sphinx's word puzzle in the maze, and none of them is reproduced here. Each card describes something from the wizarding world in clue form, so the answer is a thing from the books, never a line from one.
What riddle does the sphinx ask Harry in the Triwizard maze?
A three-part word puzzle: the parts build a word for a secret agent, then a single letter, then the syllable people make while hunting for a hard-to-find word. Strung together they name a creature Harry would rather not kiss, and the answer is a spider.
Do I need to have read the books to solve these?
Not for most of the Easy cards, since the Snitch, the Sorting Hat and the Marauder's Map reach the screen just as the cards describe them. A few Medium cards and much of the Hard tier turn on print-only details, such as the eagle knocker's question or the poltergeist the films skip, so anyone who has read the seven novels has the edge there.
Can I use these for a Harry Potter themed party?
Yes. Read a card aloud, take guesses from each house table, and award points before you reveal the answer. Mixing the quiz cards and the emoji puzzles in with the riddles keeps younger guests in the game while the book readers fight over the Hard tier.
The Hard tier is where book readers pull ahead of film watchers, so settle the score there before you leave. When you want riddles that hide the answer in a contradiction instead of a fact, the Hobbit riddles pick up where Bilbo's riddle game left off, and the hard riddles take the wizarding world away and leave only the wordplay.