42 Christmas riddles with answers
Christmas riddles about trees, stockings, snowmen and Santa. The first set suits young kids, the second older kids, and the last section is for teens and adults.
Updated
Easy riddles for kids
I wear a star on my head all through December, but I've never been famous. What am I?
easy
A Christmas tree.
A star often sits on top of a Christmas tree, and a star is also a famous person.
I'm a big sock, but nobody ever puts a foot in me. On Christmas morning I'm full of treats. What am I?
easy
A Christmas stocking.
A stocking is shaped like a sock, but it hangs up empty and gets filled with small gifts.
Everyone is excited to rip me to pieces on Christmas morning. What am I?
easy
Wrapping paper.
Presents are wrapped in paper, and tearing it off is the fun part.
I have 24 little doors, but nobody ever walks through any of them. What am I?
easy
An advent calendar.
Most advent calendars have one little door to open for each day from December 1 to 24.
Shake me and it snows, but nobody in my tiny town ever gets cold. What am I?
easy
A snow globe.
A snow globe is a clear ball of water with a little scene inside and white flakes that swirl when you shake it.
I have runners, but I never run anywhere. In the story, reindeer pull me across the sky. What am I?
easy
A sleigh.
The long blades a sleigh slides on are called runners.
My walls are cookie and my roof is frosting, but nobody lives in me, and everybody wants a bite. What am I?
easy
A gingerbread house.
A gingerbread house is built from cookie walls stuck together with icing.
I twinkle like a star, but you have to plug me in. What am I?
easy
Christmas lights.
Strings of small lights twinkle on trees and houses, but they need electricity.
I'm round like a ring, but I hang on the front door instead of on a finger. What am I?
easy
A wreath.
A wreath is a circle of green branches that people hang on their doors.
I'm a gift under the tree, and I'm also a word that means right now. What am I?
easy
A present.
A present is a gift, and the present is also this moment.
I visit almost every house in one night, but I never use the front door. Who am I?
easy
Santa Claus.
In the story, Santa comes down the chimney.
I'm a cane, but nobody leans on me when they walk. I'm usually striped red and white, and I taste like mint. What am I?
easy
A candy cane.
A walking cane helps someone walk, but a candy cane is a hook-shaped candy, often peppermint.
My first half falls from winter clouds. My second half is a grown-up boy. Together I stand in the yard with a carrot for a nose. What am I?
easy
A snowman.
SNOW and MAN make SNOWMAN.
My first half is a direction on a compass. My second half is a long stick. Together I'm where Santa lives in the story. What am I?
easy
The North Pole.
NORTH and POLE make NORTH POLE.
I'm a ball, but nobody ever kicks me or throws me. I hang on a branch and shine. What am I?
easy
A Christmas ornament.
Round, shiny ornaments are often called balls, but they're only for hanging on the tree.
I hug your neck all winter long, but I don't have a single arm. What am I?
easy
A scarf.
A scarf wraps around your neck to keep you warm.
I grow from the top down. I get longer when it's freezing and drip away when it warms up. What am I?
easy
An icicle.
Icicles hang from roofs and branches and grow downward as dripping water freezes.
You make me by lying in the snow and sweeping your arms up and down, but I can't fly. What am I?
easy
A snow angel.
The shape your arms leave in the snow looks like wings.
We knock on doors in December, but instead of asking for candy, we sing. Who are we?
easy
Carolers.
Carolers go from house to house singing Christmas songs.
Harder riddles for kids
Put one letter in front of ELF, and you get a word for your own self. What is it?
medium
SELF.
S plus ELF makes SELF.
Change the first letter of GIFT, and you get what you do to a heavy box. What is the new word?
medium
LIFT.
Swap the G in GIFT for an L and you get LIFT.
Change the first letter of TREE, and you get a word that means it costs nothing. What is the new word?
medium
FREE.
Swap the T in TREE for an F and you get FREE.
Change the last letter of BELL, and you get something you wear around your waist. What is the new word?
medium
BELT.
Swap the last L in BELL for a T and you get BELT.
Take away my first letter and I mean "at this very moment." Put it back and I fall from winter clouds. What am I?
medium
Snow.
SNOW without the S is NOW.
Which number is hiding in the word MITTEN?
medium
TEN.
MIT-TEN: the last three letters spell TEN.
Which body of water is hiding in the word SNOWFLAKE?
medium
A LAKE.
SNOWF-LAKE: the last four letters spell LAKE.
Which word for what people call you is hiding in the word ORNAMENT?
medium
NAME.
OR-NAME-NT: the middle letters spell NAME.
Which word for what you do with a book is hiding in GINGERBREAD?
medium
READ.
GINGERB-READ: the last four letters spell READ.
Which word for what you do at dinner is hiding in the word WREATH?
medium
EAT.
WR-EAT-H: the middle letters spell EAT.
Which royal is hiding inside the word STOCKING?
medium
A KING.
STOC-KING: the last four letters spell KING.
Which part of your body is hiding in the word CHESTNUT?
medium
Your CHEST.
CHEST-NUT: the first five letters spell CHEST.
Santa walks out of his front door at the North Pole and goes one mile in a straight line. Which direction did he walk?
medium
South.
From the North Pole, every direction is south.
Riddles for teens and adults
Swap two letters in something that often sits on top of a Christmas tree, and you get what a protractor measures. What are the two words?
hard
ANGEL and ANGLE.
Swap the E and the L in ANGEL and you get ANGLE.
Remove one letter from a prickly Christmas plant with red berries, and you get a word that means sacred. What is the plant?
hard
Holly.
HOLLY without one L is HOLY.
Four stockings hang in a row for Ava, Ben, Cora and Dan. Cora's is at one end. Ben's is next to Cora's. Dan's is not next to Ben's. Whose stocking hangs at the other end?
hard
Dan's.
Cora's is at one end and Ben's is second. The only place not next to Ben's is the far end, so Dan's hangs there and Ava's is third.
Rearrange the letters of TINSEL to get a word that means to join the army.
hard
ENLIST.
TINSEL and ENLIST use the same six letters.
Rearrange the letters of CAROLS to name living things found in warm, shallow seas.
hard
CORALS.
CAROLS and CORALS use the same six letters.
Rearrange the letters of DASHER, one of Santa's reindeer, to get a word that means split between people.
hard
SHARED.
DASHER and SHARED use the same six letters.
Rearrange the letters of MANGER to get a word for someone from Berlin.
hard
GERMAN.
MANGER and GERMAN use the same six letters.
Take the P off PRESENT, and you get a word for feeling bitter about something. What is it?
hard
RESENT.
PRESENT without the P is RESENT.
Which Christmas word sounds exactly like a short way of saying "you will"?
hard
Yule.
Yule, an old name for the Christmas season, sounds the same as "you'll."
Three gifts, a book, a scarf and a game, are wrapped in red, green and gold paper. The book is not in red. The scarf is in gold. What color is the game's paper?
hard
Red.
The scarf takes gold, so the book, which isn't red, must be green. That leaves red for the game.
Plan the round and team scores
8 turns × 60 seconds = 8 minutes of play, plus instructions and breaks.
60
These are adjustable house rules. Pause whenever the group needs more time.
Team 1: 0
Team 2: 0
Use this set with a group
Read a prompt, allow thinking time, then invite an answer or a pass. For a timed round, choose a turn length before starting. A host can keep the printed answers out of view until the round ends.