(as a note, because this is an enriched last Sphinx’s Riddle thing, with extra jokes and puzzles and such, I have un-passwordprotected it, and by the way, the answer to the last riddle was password)
5th Fortnight’s Riddle (back-to-school riddle)
So, one grandmother, two mothers, and four children went to the park. How many people went to the park?
Answer: four people (I’ll give them fake names): Nina (grandmother/mother/child); Pinta, daughter of Nina (mother/child); Santa Maria, daughter of Pinta, granddaughter of Nina (child); and Santa Maria’s twin Mayflower, daughter of Pinta, granddaughter of Nina (child). So there you have it: one grandmother, two mothers, and four children.
Beginning of School Year Joke
The address of spaghetti and burgers is what?
(answer: the Spaghetti’s-burg Address)
Math Question #1
As we all know, since the fact is elementary, there are 293 ways to make change for a dollar. I can think of at least 154 ways right now (just kidding:). You can make $6 using only 137 coins. See if you can find out which coins those are that I used. Keep in mind that in your answer I don’t want you to have more coins of the same type (like the quarter coin, for ex) than you can make a dollar with (for quarter usage your limit would be 4 quarters, since 4 quarters make up a dollar).
(answer: 100 pennies, 20 nickels, 10 dimes, 4 quarters, 2 half-dollar coins, and 1 dollar coin make up $6 using 137 coins.)
Math Question #2
So, your older sister (lucky girl) was born on February 30th, at 11:59 (one second before midnight). Fortunately, you are her twin! But you were born a second after her, just as the clock struck midnight (you might be thinking on the bright side, at least you don’t have to share a birthday, but think again!).
Your sister’s birthday comes around only every four years. So that means that she ages 1 year to your every 4 (according to the number of birthdays she has had). So when you are 16, she is only 4. When you are 4,000 she is only 1,000. And all because of one second between your births — truly a life-changing one second!!! 🙁
So, when you are sixty, how old is she (according to the number of birthdays she has had)?
(answer: She is 15.)
Last Laugh (well, not your last laugh)
A poisonous animal you can’t eat. A poisonous plant you shouldn’t eat either (think Deadly Hemlock, which was the end of Socrates). A venomous animal (think Spitting Cobra, which can blind people and animals with their spittle from 5 feet away with deadly accuracy) don’t get too near. But who’s ever heard of a venomous plant?
Here’s a tricky one. All spiders inject poison into their prey, but they are venomous spiders. If I am wrong on that, tell me so, please.
Educational Note: Something that’s poisonous you can’t eat, but if it bites you (and it’s not a venomous animal as well) then you’re okay. Something that’s venomous can endanger you if it injects poison into you. I don’t recommend eating a venomous animal, although I don’t know if you can or not. I wouldn’t eat the poison, though. That’s for sure.
End of Summer Joke
What did the American time traveler say when he saw the Septuagint?
(answer: It’s all Greek to me.)
1ST NOTE: RiddleGiver is going to be taking a break from riddles this school year. Check back at Thanksgiving and Christmas for more riddles. RiddleGiver will make her official return next summer.
2ND NOTE: This Sphinx’s Riddle page (and Archaic Riddles page) are going to be moved to under the heading ‘Blog’. Just hover over ‘Blog’, and you can find this page. Hover over ‘Sphinx’s Riddle’, and you will see ‘Archaic Riddles’. This move will happen on September something-ith.
3RD NOTE: IN PLACE OF THIS PAGE I AM GOING TO POST A PAGE OF COLORING PAGES THAT YOU CAN PRINT (you can make multiple copies for a Sunday School, your friends, and/or your family).
The Sphinx’s Riddle is a sort of riddle game. Every fortnight there’s a new riddle, and to see the riddle you must type in a password, which is always the answer to the riddle from the fortnight before. If you can’t figure out a riddle, never fear. I will have the previous fortnight’s riddle in a separate post, along with the answer.
Why is it called the Sphinx’s Riddle? The sphinx from Greek and Egyptian mythology was a monster of Thebes. It had the face of a woman, the wings of an eagle, and the body of a lion. Now that’s an interesting mythical creature! She, or maybe I should say, it, stopped travelers to ask them a riddle about the three ages of man. If they couldn’t answer, well, then… let’s just say that they didn’t get to their anticipated destination. Eventually, a man named Oedipus came along and defeated the Sphinx.
Check for the next riddle, coming out soon (see the dates right after the riddle).