| What can you do to get riddle answers? This | | | | The frog fell into a hole that was 14 1/2 feet |
| depends on the type of riddle. Consider the | | | | deep. He could jump 3 feet, but he slid back a |
| following examples of a few different ones, and | | | | foot each time he jumped. How many jumps |
| the simple "rules" or techniques you can use to | | | | does it take him to get out of the hole? |
| solve them. | | | | This riddle answer might appear to be 8 jumps, |
| Find The Key Element Of The Riddle | | | | since the frog only makes 2 feet of progress |
| Suppose your sock drawer has 6 black socks, 4 | | | | each time he jumps. It seems that since he is at |
| brown socks, 8 white socks, and 2 tan socks. | | | | 14 feet after 7 jumps, he needs one more jump |
| How many socks would you have to pull out in | | | | to get out. However, he actually jumps 3 feet |
| the dark to be sure you had a matching pair? | | | | each time. Though he normally slides back a foot, |
| With riddles like this, the fastest way to an | | | | his 7th jump, starting from 12 feet, would take |
| answer is usually to find the "key element." | | | | him up and out of the hole. Look for the "trick." |
| Mentioning the numbers of socks of each color is | | | | Riddle Answers You Won't Get |
| meant to mislead you. In reality, the key element | | | | What English word is nine letters long, and can |
| is the total number of different colors. Imagine | | | | remain an English word at each step as you |
| trying to get a matching pair out of a hundred | | | | remove one letter at a time, right down to a |
| different colors, and you'll understand this. There | | | | single letter? List the letter you remove each time |
| are four colors in this case, so taking out five | | | | and the words that result at each step. |
| socks guarantees that two will match. Look for | | | | This is more like "word trivia" than a riddle. To find |
| the key element. | | | | the answer, you would probably have to just |
| Watch For Misleading Clues | | | | start going word-by-word through the whole |
| Are you good at math? Complete the last two in | | | | dictionary, testing each nine-letter word. Of |
| this sequence: 1=3, 2=3, 3=5, 4=4, 5=4, 6=3, | | | | course, you could try "reverse engineering" your |
| 7=5, 8=5, 9=4, 10=3, 11=?, 12=? | | | | own solution, starting with a one letter word, like |
| Since a riddle usually tries to mislead, as soon as | | | | "I," and adding a letter at a time: I, in, tin, tint, |
| you read "Are you good at math?" you should | | | | stint, stints... |
| suspect that this is more than a math problem. | | | | That one only makes it to six letters, but you get |
| The answers for both are 6, because that is the | | | | the point. Unfortunately, this doesn't give you the |
| number of letters in the name of the numbers. | | | | answer to the original riddle. This is a way to |
| Look for misleading clues. | | | | create new riddles, though, and that is one way |
| Watch For The "Trick" | | | | to always have the riddle answers. |