Did you know that doing brain teasers and logic problems can improve short-term memory loss?
Challenging your mind with math brain teasers and other types of puzzles keeps the connections between your brain cells sharp. Plus, learning how to solve brain teasers improves your ability to concentrate and focus, too!
This big list of brain teasers for adults with answers will test your critical thinking skills–and even help you improve them—so you can learn how to solve brain teasers even faster thanks to all the practice you're getting!
So if you're ready to put your mind to the test, dive in and see how many of these 101 brain teasers you can solve—without peeking at the answers!
101 Brain Teasers
1. A doctor and a bus driver are both in love with the same woman, an attractive girl named Sarah. The bus driver had to go on a long bus trip that would last a week. Before he left, he gave Sarah seven apples. Why?
An apple a day keeps the doctor away!
2. I left my campsite and hiked south for 3 miles. Then I turned east and hiked for 3 miles. I then turned north and hiked for 3 miles, at which time I came upon a bear inside my tent eating my food! What color was the bear?
White, since the only place you can do that is the North Pole and polar bears are the only kind of bears that live there.
3. A woman shoots her husband. Then she holds him underwater for over 5 minutes. Finally, she hangs him. But 5 minutes later they both go out together and enjoy a wonderful dinner together. How can this be?
The woman was a photographer. She shot a picture of her husband, developed it, and hung it up to dry.
4. What is special about these words: job, polish, herb?
They are pronounced differently when the first letter is capitalized.
5. I am taken from a mine, and shut up in a wooden case, from which I am never released, and yet I am used by almost everybody. What am I?
Pencil lead
6. A man stands on one side of a river, his dog on the other. The man calls his dog, who immediately crosses the river without getting wet and without using a bridge or a boat. How did the dog do it?
The river was frozen
7. I can't be bought, but I can be stolen with a glance. I'm worthless to one, but priceless to two. What am I?
Love
8. Turn me on my side and I am everything. Cut me in half and I am nothing. What am I?
The number 8
9. No matter how little or how much you use me, you change me every month. What am I?
A calendar
10. How can 8 + 8 = 4?
When you think in terms of time. 8 AM + 8 hours= 4 o’clock.
Related: 25 Logic Puzzles
11. What has cities, but no houses; forests, but no trees; and water, but no fish?
A map
12. A red house is made from red bricks. A blue house is made from blue bricks. A yellow house is made from yellow bricks. What is a greenhouse made from?
Glass
13. There is a word in the English language in which the first two letters signify a male, the first three letters signify a female, the first four signify a great man, and the whole word, a great woman. What is the word?
Heroine
14. In my hand I have two coins that are newly minted. Together, they total 30 cents. One isn’t a nickel. What are the coins?
A quarter and a nickel
15. What is harder to catch the faster you run?
Your breath
16. You’re escaping a labyrinth and there are three exits. Exit A leads to an inferno. Exit B leads to an assassin. Exit C leads to a lion that hasn’t eaten in 3 years. Which exit do you pick?
Exit C. If a lion hasn’t eaten in 3 years, it has definitely starved to death.
17. What fastens two people yet touches only one?
A wedding ring
18. What kind of running means walking?
Running out of gas
19. What can be swallowed, but can also swallow you?
Pride
20. They fill me up and you empty me, almost every day; if you raise my arm, I work the opposite way. What am I?
A mailbox
21. Which three letters can frighten a thief away?
ICU
22. First I am dried, then I am wet. The longer I swim, the more taste you get. What am I?
Tea
23. Lovely and round, I shine with pale light, grown in the darkness, A lady's delight. What am I?
A pearl
24. My voice is tender, my waist is slender and I'm often invited to play. Yet wherever I go I must take my bow or else I have nothing to say. What am I?
A violin
25. I am a box that holds keys without locks, yet they can unlock your soul. What am I?
A piano
Related: Brain Teasers for Kids
26. I have a big mouth and I am also quite loud! I am NOT a gossip but I do get involved with everyone's dirty business. What am I?
A vacuum cleaner
27. I have four wings, but cannot fly, I never laugh and never cry; On the same spot I'm always found, toiling away with little sound. What am I?
A windmill
28. What can be stolen, mistaken, or altered, yet never leaves you your entire life?
Your identity
29. Until I am measured, I am not known. Yet you miss me, when I have flown. What am I?
Time
30. Some try to hide, some try to cheat, but time will show, we always will meet. Try as you might, to guess my name, I promise you'll know, when you do claim. Who am I?
Death
31. Four cars come to a four-way stop, all coming from a different direction. They can't decide who got there first, so they all go forward at the same time. They do not crash into each other, but all four cars go. How is this possible?
They all made right-hand turns
32. Take one out and scratch my head, I am now black but once was red. What am I?
A match
33. I weaken all men for hours each day. I show you strange visions while you are away. I take you by night, by day take you back. None suffer to have me, but do from my lack. What am I?
Sleep
34. He has married many women, but has never been married. Who is he?
A preacher
35. My life is often a volume of grief, your help is needed to turn a new leaf. Stiff is my spine and my body is pale, but I'm always ready to tell a tale. What am I?
A book
36. What has no hands but might knock on your door, and if it does you better open up?
Opportunity
37. What do you throw out when you want to use it but take in when you don't want to use it?
An anchor
38. I can be short and sometimes hot. When displayed, I rarely impress. What am I?
Temper
39. What can be driven although it doesn't have wheels, sliced but stays whole?
A golf ball
40. The cost of making only the maker knows, Valueless if bought, but sometimes traded. A poor man may give one as easily as a king. When one is broken pain and deceit are assured. What is it?
Promise
41. What rocks but does not roll?
A rocking chair
42. Shoot at me a thousand times and I may still survive. But, one scratch from me and you will find your prospects take a dive. What am I?
An eight-ball
43. Why is the letter F like death?
Because without it life is a lie, or it makes life a lie.
44. You do not want to have it, But when you do have it, You do not want to lose it. What is it?
A lawsuit
45. An elevator is on the ground floor. There are four people in the elevator including me. When the lift reaches the first floor, one person gets out and three people get in. The lift goes up to the second floor, 2 people get out, 6 people get in. It then goes up to the next floor up, no one gets out but 12 people get in. Halfway up to the next floor up the elevator cable snaps, it crashes to the floor. Everyone else dies in the elevator except me. How did I survive?
I got off on the first floor
46. Guess the next three letters in the series GTNTL.
I, T, S. The complete sequence is the first letter of every word in the sentence.
47. Arnold Schwarzenegger has a long one. Michael J. Fox has a short one. Madonna does not use hers. Bill Clinton always uses his. The Pope never uses his. What is it?
Last name
48. The number 8,549,176,320 is a unique number. What is so special about it?
This is the only number that includes all the digits arranged in alphabetical order.
49. Find a number less than 100 that is increased by one-fifth of its value when its digits are reversed.
45 (1/5 of 45 = 9, 9 + 45 = 54)
50. What letter comes next in the following sequence? D R M F S L T_
D – each letter represents one note in the diatonic musical scale: Do, Re, Mi, Fa, Sol, La, Ti, Do
Related: 75 Tongue Twisters
51. You are in a place called Wally’s World and there is only one law. There is a mirror, but no reflection. There is pizza with cheese, but not sausage. There is pepper, but no salt. There is a door, yet no entrance or exit. What is the law?
Each word in Wally’s World must contain double letters.
52. I come in different shapes and sizes. Parts of me are curved, other parts are straight. You can put me anywhere you like, but there is only one right place for me. What am I?
A puzzle piece
53. I have no eyes, no legs, or ears, and I help move the earth. What am I?
An earthworm
54. A sundial has the fewest moving parts of any timepiece. Which has the most?
An hourglass, with thousands of grains of sand
55. What is unusual about the following words: revive, banana, grammar, voodoo, assess, potato, dresser, uneven?
Take the first letter of each word and place it at the end. It will spell the same word backward.
56. Put a coin into an empty bottle and insert a cork into the neck. How can you remove the coin without removing the cork or breaking the bottle?
Push the cork down into the bottle. Then shake the coin out.
57. In 1990, a person was 15 years old. In 1995, that same person was 10 years old. How can this be?
The person was born in 2005 B.C.
58. You’re standing in a hallway with three light switches on the wall, each of which turns on a different lamp inside a closed room. You can’t see inside the room, and you can’t open the door except to enter the room. You can enter the room only once, and when you do, all the lamps must be turned off. How can you tell which switch turns on which lamp?
Turn on the right switch and leave it on for two minutes. After two minutes, turn on the middle switch and leave it on for one minute. When that minute is up, turn off both switches and enter the room. One light bulb will be hot (1st switch) and one will be warm (2nd switch). The cold bulb will correspond to the switch you didn’t turn on.
59. Two boxers are in a match scheduled for 12 rounds. (Pure boxing only. There are no kicking or takedowns). One of the boxers gets knocked out after only six rounds, yet no man throws a punch. How is this possible?
Both the boxers were female
60. What does this mean? I RIGHT I
Right between the eyes
Related: 101 Riddles
61. I have a large money box, 10 inches wide and 5 inches tall. Roughly how many coins can I place until my money box is no longer empty?
Just one, after which it will no longer be empty.
62. Brothers and sisters I have none but this man's father is my father's son. Who is the man?
The man is my son
63. Who makes it, has no need of it. Who buys it, has no use for it. Who uses it can neither see nor feel it. What is it?
A coffin
64. What runs all around a backyard, yet never moves?
A fence
65. What tastes better than it smells?
A tongue
66. What has a bottom at the top?
Legs
67. What goes through cities and fields, but never moves?
A road
68. During which month do people sleep the least?
February (there are usually fewer nights in February).
69. What is made of water but if you put it into water it will die?
An ice cube
70. Which creature walks on four legs in the morning, two legs in the afternoon, and three legs in the evening?
Man. He crawls on all fours as a baby, then walks on two feet as an adult, and then walks with a cane as an old man.
71. What 4-letter word can be written forward, backward or upside down, and can still be read from left to right?
Noon
72. Take off my skin - I won't cry, but you will! What am I?
An onion
73. A family has two parents and six sons. Each of the sons has one sister. How many people are in the family?
Nine. Two parents, six sons, one daughter!
74. The water level in a reservoir is low, but doubles every day. It takes 60 days to fill the reservoir. How long does it take for the reservoir to become half full?
59 days. If the water level doubles every day, the reservoir on any given day was half the size the day prior. If the reservoir is full on day 60, that means it was half full on day 59, not on day 30.
75. How far can a squirrel run into the woods?
Halfway. After that, he's running back out of the woods.
76. Which word logically comes next in this sequence? Spots, tops, pots, opts…
Stop. All the words are anagrams of each other.
77. Which tire doesn’t move when a car turns right?
A spare tire
78. What do an island and the letter “t” have in common?
They are both in the middle of water
79. Is the capital of Kentucky pronounced Louisville or Luee-ville?
Neither. The capital is Frankfurt
80. On which side of a chicken are there more feathers?
The outside
81. How can a man who shaves several times a day still sport a long beard?
He’s a barber
82. What coat goes on wet?
A coat of paint
83. A rancher had 500 cows and took one shot that got them all. How did he do it?
A panoramic photo
84. What can’t talk but will reply when spoken to?
An echo
85. What can you keep after giving to someone?
Your word
86. A man dies of old age on his 25 birthday. How is this possible?
He was born on February 29th
87. I have branches, but no fruit, trunk or leaves. What am I?
A bank
88. The more of this there is, the less you see. What is it?
Darkness
89. Where does today come before yesterday?
The dictionary
Related:Trivia Questions for Kids
90. What can’t be put in a saucepan?
Its lid
91. What is black when it’s clean and white when it’s dirty?
A blackboard
92. What can you hold in your left hand but not in your right?
Your right elbow
93. What has many keys but can’t open a single lock?
A piano
94. What is cut on a table, but is never eaten?
A deck of cards
95. What kind of band doesn’t play music?
A rubber band
96. What building has the most stories?
The library
97. It stalks the countryside with ears that can’t hear. What is it?
Corn
98. A man describes his daughters, saying, “They are all blonde, but two; all brunette but two; and all redheaded but two.” How many daughters does he have?
Three. A blonde, a brunette and a redhead
99. What is 3/7 chicken, 2/3 cat and 2/4 goat?
Chicago
100. If you drop me I’m sure to crack, but give me a smile and I’ll always smile back. What am I?
A mirror
101. What would you find in the middle of Toronto?
The letter “o”
Keep the fun going by checking out this giant list of 250 "Would You Rather?" questionsand 125 Trick Questions.
FAQs
How do riddles help your brain? ›
They sharpen your logic and reasoning
Puzzles are intended to exercise your brain. Crossword puzzles, riddles, word searches and logic problems can all activate different parts of your brain, helping you to hone your critical and analytical thinking skills.
Who is? Brain Teaser & Riddles is a completely free riddle game, which will challenge your brain and mind. Each level consists of difficult choices, riddles, puzzles, and questions. You will solve complex riddles by finding clues, objects, and hidden secrets.
What has 13 hearts but nobody? ›Q: What has 13 hearts, but no other organs? ... ... A: A deck of playing cards.
What rocks but doesn't roll? ›What rocks but does not roll? Answer: A rocking chair.
What has a head but no hair answer? ›A Pin Has a Head, But Has No Hair.
What has ring but no finger answer? ›Hence the answer Telephone makes perfect sense.
What flies but doesn't have wings? ›The answer to the “what flies without wings” riddle is “time”.
How to increase memory? ›- Be physically active every day. Physical activity raises blood flow to the whole body, including the brain. ...
- Stay mentally active. ...
- Spend time with others. ...
- Stay organized. ...
- Sleep well. ...
- Eat a healthy diet. ...
- Manage chronic health problems.
- On the gold casket: “Who chooseth me shall gain what many men desire.”
- On the silver casket: “Who chooseth me shall get as much as he deserves.”
- On the lead casket: “Who chooseth me must give and hazard all he hath.”
9. The alphabet goes from A to Z but I go Z to A. What am I? Answer: A zebra.
What has head but no? ›
Answer: A coin... What has a head and a tail, but no body? - from brainfans ... Answer: A coin...
What has a neck but no head *? ›The answer to the “who is that with a neck and no head” riddle is “a shirt”. There you have it!
What has many teeth but can't bite? ›What has teeth but doesn't bite? A comb!
What has heart but no body? ›Puzzle: What has a Heart but no other organs? A deck of cards.
What many eyes but Cannot see? ›The answer to the “what has an eye but cannot see” riddle is a needle. Get it… the eye of a needle. There have been a lot of classic riddles going around at the moment, but this may be considered a lesser known gem.
What can but Cannot walk? ›talks, has a head but never weeps, has a bed but. never sleeps? Answer: A River!
What holes but still holds water? ›Sponge is full of holes but still holds water.
What has leg and doesn't walk? ›What has four legs and one back but can't walk? Chair.
What runs but never walks? ›talks, has a head but never weeps, has a bed but. never sleeps? Answer: A River!
What has a head but no face? ›Answer: A watch has an head but no face .
What has a face and no arms? ›
A clock.
What gets wet while drying? ›The answer to the riddle is “a towel”.
It is a bath towel because the more it dries, the wetter it becomes. When the towel is used to dry other things or people, it keeps on getting wetter as it keeps absorbing the water.
A palm tree.
What has 88 keys? ›A standard piano has 88 keys: 52 white and 36 black.
What flower has two lips? ›Tulips (Two Lips) For Lovers Flower Bouquet.
What animals can fly but aren't birds? ›Mammals. Bats are the only freely flying mammals. A few other mammals can glide or parachute; the best known are flying squirrels and flying lemurs.
What bird has no wings? ›Kiwis. Kiwis are flightless birds native to New Zealand, and have become a symbol and nickname for New Zealanders all over the world. They are about the size of a chicken. Kiwis are unusual because they have the largest eggs, in relation to their own body size, of any bird in the world.
Are there brain exercises to improve memory? ›Repeat and Recall What People Say
Start by creating a presence in a moment by following the words a person says to you by repeating them in your mind. Repeat everything they are saying silently in your mind. This is a brain exercise that helps to boost your cognitive function while enabling your brain to remember more.
- The easiest and fastest way to fix this issue is to press "Ctrl + Alt + Del" keys at the same time to bring up Task Manager. ...
- Once here, select Task Manager >, check and select programs that are using high memory and CPU usage > click End Task to close the selected programs or apps.
- Run antivirus software for a full system scan.
- Close the programs that are using too much memory.
- Use Windows troubleshooter.
- Manually increase virtual memory.
- Repair corrupted file system.
- Update Windows to the latest version.
- Clean junk and temporary files and folders.
What has 5 fingers but no arms? ›
Therefore, the right answer of this riddle is a glove which is not alive but have five fingers.
What has many keys but cant? ›The Answer is Piano.
What has 4 legs up and down? ›Answer: a tongs. Four legs up, four legs down, soft in the middle, and hard all round.
What game can help seniors prevent memory loss? ›- BrainCurls. This website has a variety of different games to get your brain working and flex your problem-solving muscles. ...
- SharpBrains. A comprehensive list of 25 different brain teasers and memory games. ...
- Daily Word Search. ...
- Brain Trainer. ...
- Tetris. ...
- Solitaire. ...
- Daily Crossword. ...
- Memozor.
Jigsaw puzzles are effective brain training games, as they require you to work the left and right sides of the brain at once. They also reinforce the connections between the brain cells, which improves mental speed and improves short-term memory.
What is good for the memory? ›Proven ways to protect memory include following a healthy diet, exercising regularly, not smoking, and keeping blood pressure, cholesterol, and blood sugar in check. Living a mentally active life is important, too. Just as muscles grow stronger with use, mental exercise helps keep mental skills and memory in tone.
What goes in a pocket but keeps it empty? ›19. What goes in your pocket but keeps it empty? A hole.
What has a head and tail but no body? ›What has a head and a tail, but no body? - from brainfans ... Answer: A coin... Tricky riddles, Riddles, Brain teasers.
What can run but can't walk? ›talks, has a head but never weeps, has a bed but. never sleeps? Answer: A River!
What can go up and down without moving? ›The answer to this riddle is staircase.
What can fly but has no wings? ›
The answer to the “what flies without wings” riddle is “time”.
What has a bark but Cannot bite? ›Answer: Trees, tress have bark but they don't bite.
What has a teeth but Cannot bite? ›What has teeth but doesn't bite? A comb!
What starts with E but only has one letter? ›but only has one letter in it? The answer to the riddle "what starts with 'e', ends with 'e' and has one letter in it?" is envelope.
Which animal has no legs but can walk? ›Snakes are reptiles with no legs. They move by using their muscles to push their scales against the ground or other objects. hibernation.
Which room can you not enter? ›Riddle: What room can no one enter? Answer: The letter M.
What has 6 legs but Cannot walk? ›Dragonflies possess six legs, but they are not capable of walking.
What has a foot on each side? ›What has a foot on each side and one in the middle? The answer will be included in next's week's puzzle post! Answer to last week's POTW: A plant.
What can fill a room but takes up? ›Light can fill a room but it takes up no space.
The correct answer to the given statement is light. We can see light and it fills the room.
Funny Riddle What has a face and two hands but no arms or legs? A clock.