Thanksgiving Riddles and Jokes
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Serve these thanksgiving riddles with answers alongside the pie: turkeys, wishbones, gravy rivers, and one very famous boat. The second helping is pure thanksgiving jokes and riddles, perfect for making the kids table snort. A few trivia questions about the first feast round out the meal.
Browse all the puzzles on this page ▾
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1. I strut around the farm saying gobble, gobble, and in November everyone talks about me. What am I? Easy
Need a hint?
I am the guest of honor at the feast, whether I like it or not.
Show answer
A turkey.
Gobble gobble and November fame point straight to the Thanksgiving turkey.
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2. I am a sweet red sauce made from berries that grow in a bog. What am I? Easy
Show answer
Cranberry sauce.
A sweet red sauce from bog berries describes cranberry sauce exactly.
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3. I am orange, smooth, and spiced, and I show up for dessert in a crust. What am I? Easy
Need a hint?
My main ingredient also gets carved in October.
Show answer
Pumpkin pie.
Orange, spiced dessert in a crust, plus the carving hint, means pumpkin pie.
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4. Two people grab my ends, pull, and make a wish. Snap! What am I? Medium
Need a hint?
The bigger half wins.
Show answer
The wishbone.
Two people pull the ends and make a wish, so it is the wishbone.
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5. I am bread that hides inside the bird, and some families call me dressing. What am I? Easy
Show answer
Stuffing.
Bread hidden inside the bird, also called dressing, is stuffing.
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6. I am a warm brown river poured over mountains of mashed potatoes. What am I? Easy
Need a hint?
You pour me from a little boat.
Show answer
Gravy.
A warm brown river over mashed potatoes poured from a boat is gravy.
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7. I am a curved horn overflowing with fruit and vegetables, and I decorate the table. What am I? Medium
Show answer
A cornucopia, the horn of plenty.
A curved horn overflowing with produce is the cornucopia, the horn of plenty.
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8. I am Thursday's feast, but you will meet me again in sandwiches on Friday, Saturday, and maybe Sunday. What am I? Medium
Need a hint?
The fridge is full of me.
Show answer
Leftovers.
Thursday's feast returning as weekend sandwiches describes leftovers filling the fridge.
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9. I am giant and full of air, and I float over the city while crowds cheer on Thanksgiving morning. What am I? Medium
Need a hint?
Watch the famous parade in New York.
Show answer
A parade balloon.
Giant, air-filled, floating over the New York parade names a parade balloon.
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10. I started out as a hard lump from the ground. Now I am a fluffy white cloud on your plate. What am I? Easy
Show answer
Mashed potatoes.
A hard ground lump turned fluffy white cloud on the plate is mashed potatoes.
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11. We sailed across the ocean for 66 days and shared a harvest feast in 1621. Who are we? Medium
Need a hint?
Our ship had a flowery name.
Show answer
The Pilgrims.
Sailing 66 days to the 1621 harvest feast, with a flowery ship, names the Pilgrims.
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12. After the feast, families flop on the couch to watch me get thrown, kicked, and carried. What am I? Easy
Show answer
A football.
Thrown, kicked, and carried while families watch after dinner is a football.
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13. I am a race people run on Thanksgiving morning to earn their dinner. What am I? Medium
Need a hint?
Lace up your sneakers before the feast.
Show answer
A turkey trot.
A Thanksgiving morning race to earn dinner is the turkey trot.
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14. I come in pumpkin, pecan, and apple, and there is never enough of me. What am I? Easy
Show answer
Pie.
Pumpkin, pecan, and apple varieties all point to pie.
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15. I sit quietly on your lap during dinner and catch everything you drop. What am I? Easy
Show answer
A napkin.
Sitting on your lap to catch every spill describes a napkin.
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16. I am the season's big gather-up of corn, squash, and beans, and I am the whole reason for the first feast. What am I? Medium
Show answer
The harvest.
The season's gather-up of corn, squash, and beans is the harvest.
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17. The Wampanoag taught the Pilgrims to grow me. I am tall, golden, and my kernels line up in rows. What am I? Easy
Need a hint?
You might eat me right off the cob.
Show answer
Corn, also called maize.
Tall, golden, kernels in rows, eaten off the cob, names corn or maize.
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18. I am hot and patient, and I hold the turkey for hours until it turns golden brown. What am I? Easy
Show answer
The oven.
Hot and patient, holding the turkey until golden brown, is the oven.
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19. I turn red, orange, and gold, then I let go and drift onto the lawn. What am I? Easy
Show answer
An autumn leaf.
Turning red, orange, and gold then drifting down describes an autumn leaf.
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20. Everyone gathers around me on Thanksgiving. I hold the whole feast on my back and never complain. What am I? Easy
Show answer
The dinner table.
Holding the whole feast on its back without complaint is the dinner table.
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21. Joke time! Why did the turkey cross the road? Medium
Show answer
To prove he wasn't chicken.
The turkey crosses the road to prove he wasn't chicken, a play on cowardice.
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22. What key has legs and cannot open a single door? Medium
Need a hint?
Say the bird's name slowly.
Show answer
A tur-key.
A key with legs that opens no door is a tur-key, said slowly.
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23. What smells the best at Thanksgiving dinner? Medium
Show answer
Your nose.
The trick is that your nose does the smelling, so it smells best.
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24. Why did the cranberries turn red? Medium
Need a hint?
Dressing means two different things here.
Show answer
Because they saw the turkey dressing.
Cranberries blush because they saw the turkey dressing, a pun on getting dressed.
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25. What do you call the weather when it rains turkeys? Medium
Show answer
Fowl weather.
Raining turkeys makes fowl weather, a pun on foul and fowl birds.
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26. What sound does a turkey's phone make? Medium
Need a hint?
How would a bird say "ring"?
Show answer
Wing, wing, wing.
A bird would say ring as wing, so the phone goes wing wing wing.
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27. If April showers bring May flowers, what do Mayflowers bring? Medium
Show answer
Pilgrims.
Mayflowers bring Pilgrims, since the Mayflower ship carried them over.
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28. What is a turkey's favorite dessert? Medium
Need a hint?
It sounds a lot like a real dessert with a crumbly top.
Show answer
Peach gobbler.
A turkey gobbles, so peach cobbler becomes peach gobbler.
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29. Why was the Thanksgiving soup so expensive? Medium
Need a hint?
It sounds like the purest gold.
Show answer
It was made with 24 carrots.
24 carrots sounds like 24 karat gold, making the soup expensive.
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30. What instrument does a turkey play in the band? Medium
Show answer
The drumsticks.
A turkey has drumsticks for legs, which double as band drumsticks.
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31. Which ship carried the Pilgrims to America in 1620? Easy
The Mayflower landed at Plymouth after about 66 days at sea.
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32. When is Thanksgiving celebrated in the United States? Easy
US Thanksgiving lands on the fourth Thursday of November, so the date moves each year.
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33. Which president made Thanksgiving a national holiday in 1863? Medium
Abraham Lincoln proclaimed a national day of thanksgiving during the Civil War.
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34. What is the red, dangly skin under a turkey's chin called? Hard
That is the wattle. The flap over the beak is called a snood.
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35. Wild turkeys can fly. Medium
Wild turkeys manage short bursts up to about 55 miles per hour. Farm turkeys are usually too heavy.
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36. The first Thanksgiving feast in 1621 lasted three days. Medium
The Pilgrims and the Wampanoag shared games, food, and celebration for three whole days.
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37. Thanksgiving falls on November 25 every single year. Easy
It is the fourth Thursday of November, so the date changes from year to year.
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38. 🌽 + 🍞 Easy
Show answer
Cornbread (corn + bread).
Corn plus bread emoji combine into cornbread.
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39. 🌾 + 🌕 Medium
Need a hint?
It glows big and orange over the fields in fall.
Show answer
Harvest moon (harvest + moon).
Wheat plus full moon emoji combine into the fall harvest moon.
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40. 🍬 + 🍠 Medium
Need a hint?
A sweet side dish, often topped with marshmallows.
Show answer
Candied yams (candy + yams).
Candy plus yam emoji combine into candied yams, the marshmallow-topped side.
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41. I am the big bird at the center of the Thanksgiving feast. Type my name. Easy
Show answer
Turkey
The big bird at the center of the feast points to the roasted turkey.
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42. I am the tart red side dish made from berries that grow in bogs. What am I? Easy
Show answer
Cranberry sauce
A tart red side from bog berries is cranberry sauce.
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43. I am the big bird at the center of the Thanksgiving table, and I say gobble long before I am served. What am I? Easy
Show answer
A turkey.
Gobble plus the big bird on the table together name the turkey.
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44. I am the ship that carried the Pilgrims across the ocean to their new home. What am I? Easy
Show answer
The Mayflower.
The ship that carried the Pilgrims to their new home is the Mayflower.
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45. I am a red berry that gets cooked into a tart sauce every Thanksgiving. What am I? Easy
Show answer
A cranberry.
A red berry cooked into tart Thanksgiving sauce is a cranberry.
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46. Two people tug me apart after the feast, and the one who gets the bigger piece makes a wish. What am I? Medium
Show answer
The wishbone.
Tugged apart so the bigger piece grants a wish means the wishbone.
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47. I am the horn-shaped basket overflowing with fruit and vegetables, a symbol of the harvest. What am I? Medium
Show answer
A cornucopia.
A horn-shaped basket overflowing with produce is a cornucopia.
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48. I am the orange dessert with a spiced filling that ends the Thanksgiving meal. What am I? Easy
Show answer
Pumpkin pie.
The orange spiced dessert ending the meal is pumpkin pie.
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49. I am the bread-and-herb mix that gets tucked inside the turkey before it roasts. What am I? Easy
Show answer
Stuffing.
The bread-and-herb mix tucked inside the turkey is stuffing.
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50. I am poured over turkey and potatoes, brown and warm, from a little boat-shaped dish. What am I? Easy
Show answer
Gravy.
Brown and warm from a boat-shaped dish over turkey is gravy.
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51. I am the sport families gather to watch on TV every Thanksgiving afternoon. What am I? Easy
Show answer
Football.
The sport families watch on TV each Thanksgiving afternoon is football.
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52. I march down the streets of New York City every Thanksgiving with giant balloons floating overhead. What am I? Easy
Show answer
A parade.
A New York street march with giant floating balloons is a parade.
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53. I am whipped white and fluffy from potatoes, and a scoop of me holds a puddle of gravy. What am I? Easy
Show answer
Mashed potatoes.
Whipped white and fluffy from potatoes holding gravy is mashed potatoes.
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54. We were the first people to share the harvest feast with the Pilgrims. Who are we? Medium
Show answer
The Native Americans.
The first people to share the harvest feast with Pilgrims are the Native Americans.
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55. What sound does a turkey make when it is happy and proud? Easy
Show answer
Gobble gobble.
A happy, proud turkey makes the gobble gobble sound.
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56. I am the fourth Thursday of November, a day for feasting and giving thanks. What am I? Easy
Show answer
Thanksgiving.
The fourth Thursday of November for feasting and thanks is Thanksgiving.
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57. I am a nutty brown pie from the South, gooey and sweet, and I share the dessert table with the pumpkin one. What am I? Medium
Show answer
Pecan pie.
A gooey, nutty brown Southern pie beside pumpkin pie is pecan pie.
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58. Cross a turkey with a ghost, and what spooky feathered thing floats out of the haunted farmhouse? Hard
Show answer
A poultry-geist.
Poultry plus poltergeist makes a poultry-geist, a ghostly bird pun.
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59. Here is a tricky one. What do you call a cranberry that is feeling gloomy and down in the dumps? Hard
Show answer
A blue-berry.
A sad, blue cranberry becomes a blueberry, a pun on the mood.
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60. After a long voyage on a wooden ship, what kind of music did the Pilgrims like to listen to? Hard
Show answer
Plymouth Rock.
Plymouth Rock, where they landed, doubles as a style of rock music.
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61. Picture a turkey sprinting full speed away from the Thanksgiving cook. What would you call that turkey? Hard
Show answer
Fast food.
A speedy edible bird is a joke on fast food.
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62. Of all the turkeys on the farm, one was never served at any dinner table. What do you call that one bird? Hard
Show answer
Lucky.
The turkey that escapes the dinner plate is simply called lucky.
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63. A turkey has a wattle dangling under its chin, but what is the floppy flap of skin draped over its beak called? Hard
Show answer
A snood.
The flap over a turkey's beak is the snood, easy to confuse with the wattle.
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64. At a very fancy feast, a turkey lifts a shiny cup to make a toast. What is that cup called? Hard
Show answer
A gobble-t.
A goblet becomes a gobble-t, playing on the turkey's gobble.
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65. The turkey pushed away the pumpkin pie and would not take a single bite. Why did it refuse dessert? Hard
Show answer
Because it was already stuffed.
A turkey full of stuffing is already stuffed, a pun on being too full.
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66. Riddle me this. I have plenty of ears, yet I cannot hear a word of the dinner conversation. What am I? Hard
Show answer
An ear of corn.
Corn grows in ears that cannot hear, so the answer is an ear of corn.
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67. I have a neck but no head, and I sail across the table pouring out a warm brown stream. What am I? Hard
Show answer
A gravy boat.
A boat-shaped dish with a spout neck that pours gravy is a gravy boat.
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68. I started the day round and whole, but by night I am hollow metal with a few crumbs, and everyone swears they had only one slice. What am I? Hard
Show answer
An empty pie tin.
A dessert eaten down to bare metal and crumbs leaves an empty pie tin.
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69. I cost nothing to give, I warm both the giver and the receiver, and I am the real reason the whole holiday exists. What am I? Hard
Show answer
Gratitude, or a thank you.
The free feeling at the heart of Thanksgiving is gratitude, a thank you.
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70. Before anyone lifts a fork, the family joins hands and shares a few thankful words. What is this moment called? Hard
Show answer
Saying grace.
The thankful words shared before eating are called saying grace.
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71. Off to the side of the feast sits a smaller spot where the youngest cousins giggle, spill, and flick peas. What is it called? Hard
Show answer
The kids' table.
The smaller side table for young cousins is the kids' table.
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72. Once a year the President spares one lucky bird from the dinner plate in a silly little ceremony. What is that ceremony called? Hard
Show answer
The turkey pardon.
The yearly ceremony sparing one bird is the presidential turkey pardon.
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73. I was the Native man who taught the struggling Pilgrims to plant corn and catch fish so they could survive their first year. Who am I? Hard
Show answer
Squanto.
The Native man who taught the Pilgrims to farm and fish was Squanto.
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74. Corn, beans, and squash were planted together and given one clever family nickname by Native farmers. What were the three of them called? Hard
Show answer
The three sisters.
Corn, beans, and squash grown together were nicknamed the three sisters.
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75. I get poked deep into the thickest part of the bird, and only when I reach the right number does dinner truly begin. What am I? Hard
Show answer
A meat thermometer.
The tool poked into the turkey to check doneness is a meat thermometer.
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76. I am a puzzle you can walk right through in the fall, with tall green walls that rustle and hide the way out. What am I? Hard
Show answer
A corn maze.
A walk-through fall puzzle with tall rustling walls is a corn maze.
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77. Surprise fact time. I flavor lattes and cookies all autumn, yet I usually contain no actual pumpkin, just warm spices. What am I? Hard
Show answer
Pumpkin spice.
The autumn blend of warm spices with no real pumpkin is pumpkin spice.
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78. Beaten until I stand up stiff, the more air you trap inside me the softer I look, but leave me in the warm and I collapse. What am I? Hard
Show answer
Whipped cream.
Cream beaten stiff with air that melts in warmth is whipped cream.
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79. Two decorative pumpkins stood watch on the porch all season long. What do you call a pumpkin whose job is protecting the harvest? Hard
Show answer
A body-gourd.
A gourd standing guard is a body-gourd, a pun on bodyguard.
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80. I get the cold shoulder in the fridge, but set me near warm rolls and I fall to pieces, and folks say I make everything better. What am I? Hard
Show answer
Butter.
The cold spread that melts on warm rolls and makes food better is butter, a pun on better.
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81. I am a season you can name, and also the exact thing you do when you slip on a pile of my leaves. What am I? Hard
Show answer
Fall.
Fall is both the autumn season and the tumble you take, a double meaning.
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82. A famous winter song says I roast on an open fire, my shiny shell splits with an X so I will not burst, but I am no marshmallow. What am I? Hard
Show answer
Chestnuts.
The scored shells roasted on an open fire in the song are chestnuts.
Thanksgiving riddles for kids
Turkeys that gobble, cranberry sauce from the bog, and pumpkin pie in a crust. The first course is easy enough for the youngest cousin to answer.
Turkey jokes and Thanksgiving puns
Later in the list the riddles turn into jokes, like why the Thanksgiving soup was so expensive. Fair warning: the puns are baked all the way through.
Thanksgiving trivia and quiz cards
Twelve interactive cards mix multiple choice trivia about the Mayflower and the 1863 proclamation with true or false calls, emoji riddles, and two type-in finishers.
Your score
FAQ about Thanksgiving Riddles and Jokes
Are these Thanksgiving riddles good for the kids table?
That is their natural habitat. The questions stay on food, turkeys, and family, and every answer reveals on a tap so kids can quiz each other without help.
Is there anything here for the adults?
The trivia cards about the Pilgrims, the Mayflower, and the president who made the holiday official give grown-ups something to argue about. The puns work on anyone who claims to hate puns.
Why is Thanksgiving on the fourth Thursday of November?
Abraham Lincoln proclaimed a national day of thanksgiving in 1863 and set it on the last Thursday of November. Franklin Roosevelt later moved it a week earlier to lengthen the shopping season, which caused an uproar, so Congress fixed the date as the fourth Thursday in 1941.
If you love the cozy autumn vibe, keep the season going with our fall riddles for the whole family, then challenge everyone at the table with a round of tricky brain teasers to solve together.