A Set of Riddles
Hi Everybody,
Sorry for not having posted for a while. I’m now working on a new website, totally dedicated to learning English from humor. I believe learning English in context is important, and everybody likes to have a good laugh, so the new site should be very popular. It is, however, a LOT of work.
Here is a set of riddles for you. Each one includes some interesting language for you to think about. Please leave possible answers in the “Comments” section. Don’t worry if your answer is not right, just give it a try. Sometimes, just trying can help you to learn. Good luck and have fun!
Q1: Why did the man throw a bucket of water out the window?
Q2: Why did the man throw the butter out the window?
Q3: Why did the man throw a clock out the window?
Q4: Why did the man put the clock in the safe?
Nafis Said,
April 11, 2009 @ 2:15 am
Dear teacher Joe,
I have been thinking for a while on these riddles. I am not sure but I think a man want to throw butter out to make everywhere oily or greasy.
A man want to throw clock out the window until time flys by.
I do not know about the first one and I am also not sure about the others.
Thanks,
Warm regards,
Nafis
Rosa Said,
April 11, 2009 @ 8:12 pm
Dear my teacher Joe,
I find the answers in a website so i’m a big cheater:
Why did the man throw a bucket of water out the window?
A: He wanted to see the waterfall.
Q: Why did the man throw the butter out the window?
A: He wanted to see the butterfly.
Q: Why did the man put the clock in the safe?
A: He wanted to save time
your faithful students,
Rosa
teacherjoe Said,
April 12, 2009 @ 1:55 pm
Okay, Rosa loses 10 points for “cheating” but gains 10 points for being honest about it!
The first two riddles rely on different word usage. “A waterfall” is a noun. (It’s a river that falls down a long way.) In this riddle, though, only “water” is a noun and “fall” is used as a verb. In the second riddle, “butterfly” is a noun (a beautiful, colored insect that can fly) but this man wants to see “butter” (noun) “fly” (verb”.
The third riddle plays on the meaning of an idiom. We sometimes say “time flies like an arrow”. It does not literally mean that time can fly, it means that time seems to move very fast. However, in this riddle, the man really wants to see time physically fly!
The fourth riddles plays on the way “save” can be used either with time or with money. If we save time normally, we simply do something faster than usual. But in this riddle, the man is trying to “save time” using the method that is usually used for saving money.
Got it? Don’t be shy about asking questions if you’re not absolutely sure about the meaning!
anshika Said,
May 16, 2009 @ 4:58 pm
hello…sir
i only knew the answer of the last question…
i.e. to save time
anshika Said,
May 16, 2009 @ 5:11 pm
i saw all ur videos
and i was able to say “moses supposes……to be”
after learning it by heart.
i am from India, age 19, and student of economics
and i am not fluent in English.
have been trying for years to bring that confidence to
speak engish fluently.
i forget words when i talk.
ur website is helping me alot
through your website i got to know that the way i was
learning was wrong.
Thank you sir
teacherjoe Said,
May 28, 2009 @ 2:02 am
Hi Anshika,
Welcome to my blog. I’m not very active these days (busy looking for a new job) but I hope my past posts are still useful to some newcomers.
If you’re interested in learning how to speak English fluently,
I’ve put together a discussion group where students can help each other. I hope to announce live lessons there in the future - when my life gets more settled!
anshika Said,
May 31, 2009 @ 12:57 pm
hello sir…
I would love to join that discussion group.
i’l be needing your help from time to time.
I hope you get a new job soon..
ALL THE BEST
Thank you sir
Nucha Said,
June 10, 2009 @ 3:00 pm
Now I was wondering about the riddles teacher Joe . First of all , I read your riddles I didn’t get all ,so I didn’t have answer about it in my head . Then I read about answer’ Rosa then I felt get it a little more, but not clear. I understood more after you explained about it ,it’s clearly about meaning of riddles.
Anyway , I have a question to ask you .
Before we play the riddles what should we know about the man a little? As I am not sure if I play this riddle with friends then they can imagine about answer like that. And also the riddles used “the man”, “ not a man” that meant specific to the man that you said before ? in my opinion ,but if I am wrong , sorry about it .
BTW, they are excellent I like it a lot and want to play with my friends.
Sincerely ,
Nucha
teacherjoe Said,
June 15, 2009 @ 3:57 pm
Hi Nucha,
Good question about “the man” vs. “a man”. Sometimes we use “the” in a situation where everyone knows there is just one thing. For example, we can say that someone went “to the airport” because most cities today have an airport. Or I can say “I have a rice cooker in the kitchen”. There are many possible kinds and types of rice cookers, but I have only one kitchen in my apartment. (As do most people!) It is the same with “the man” in a riddle. There is only one man in this kind of riddle. We don’t really have to know more about him, just as you don’t have to know anything special about my kitchen. We just know there is one man, not many.
I think part of the reason we do this in a riddle is because it is very short. In a story we would have time to start with “a man” first, then switch to “the man” later. But a riddle is just one sentence, so our listeners must simply understand that there is one man.
Does this make sense?
Joe
Nucha Said,
June 16, 2009 @ 9:31 am
Dear teacherjoe :
Really ,it’s true . You know after I sent the message to aking you such a thing . I felt like forgeting about the grammar for a while and I asked myself why you asked like that ?. Because many things that we can use “the” without “a” before that everyone understand . Anyway, when you explained the thing to me again that made me realize about “the and a ” more and more ,so thank you .
And also the riddles , I get it now . Becuase a riddle is just one sentence . Thank you for making me clear . Do you mind if I show your some riddle and some jokes in my group is in MyEc ?
sincerely ,
Nucha
teacherjoe Said,
June 18, 2009 @ 1:44 am
Nucha,
Of course you can always show the riddles to others. Nobody actually “owns” a riddle. In the future, I hope to have many more riddles, with explanations, on my new website, www.LaughandLearnEnglish.com, but that won’t until the end of the year, I think…
Nucha Said,
June 18, 2009 @ 11:21 am
Hi Teacher Joe
Yes, may be it’s true as I try to visit there ,but can’t . I hope I will see it one day when you allow .^_^ Anyway, thanks you for your reply that make me clear the thing .
Sincerely,
Nucha