28 Thanksgiving riddles with answers
Thanksgiving riddles about the turkey, the table and the harvest to pass around at dinner. Easy ones for kids come first; the last section is for teens and adults.
Updated
Easy riddles for kids
I'm a bone that everybody wants to break. What am I?
easy
The wishbone.
Two people pull on the wishbone, and whoever ends up with the bigger piece gets to make a wish.
I'm poured from a boat, but I've never been to sea. What am I?
easy
Gravy.
Gravy is served from a small jug called a gravy boat.
I'm shaped like a horn, but nobody ever plays me. Fruit and vegetables spill out of me onto the table. What am I?
easy
A cornucopia.
A cornucopia is a horn-shaped basket filled with food from the harvest.
I'm stuffed, but not with food. I stand in the field with my arms out, and birds are supposed to be scared of me. What am I?
easy
A scarecrow.
A scarecrow is stuffed with straw and put in a field to keep birds away from the crops.
I'm as tall as a building and I float down the street, but people have to hold me down with ropes. What am I?
easy
A parade balloon.
Giant balloons in Thanksgiving parades are held down by teams pulling on ropes.
After the big dinner, everybody suddenly has somewhere else to be when it's time to do us. What are we?
easy
The dishes.
Washing the dishes after a big meal is the job everyone tries to dodge.
I'm a drumstick, but I've never played a drum. What am I?
easy
A turkey leg.
A turkey's lower leg is called a drumstick.
On Thanksgiving afternoon I get kicked and thrown around, and nobody feels sorry for me. What am I?
easy
A football.
Watching or playing football on Thanksgiving afternoon is a tradition in many American families.
In November we fall, but nobody trips. What are we?
easy
Leaves.
In the season called fall, leaves drop from the trees.
I'm a vegetable on the Thanksgiving table, and I'm also a sport played with a racket. What am I?
easy
Squash.
Squash is a vegetable, and squash is also a racket game played indoors.
Harder riddles for kids
Some families say me before the meal, and a ballet dancer moves with me. What am I?
medium
Grace.
Saying grace means giving thanks before eating, and grace is also the smooth, easy way a dancer moves.
My name is a month and a flower put together, but I'm a ship that carried the Pilgrims. What am I?
medium
The Mayflower.
MAY and FLOWER make MAYFLOWER, the ship that sailed to America in 1620.
Which thing that opens a lock is hiding in the word TURKEY?
medium
A KEY.
TUR-KEY: the last three letters spell KEY.
Put one letter in front of CORN, and you get a nut that squirrels bury. What is it?
medium
ACORN.
A plus CORN makes ACORN.
Add one letter to the end of PIE, and you get a dock where boats tie up. What is it?
medium
PIER.
PIE plus R makes PIER.
Which short sleep is hiding in the word NAPKIN?
medium
A NAP.
NAP-KIN: the first three letters spell NAP.
Rearrange the letters of PLATE to get part of a flower.
medium
PETAL.
PLATE and PETAL use the same five letters.
Which small hotel is hiding in the word DINNER?
medium
An INN.
D-INN-ER: the middle letters spell INN.
Which word for what you did at dinner is hiding in GRATEFUL?
medium
ATE.
GR-ATE-FUL: the middle letters spell ATE.
Which part of your foot is hiding inside the word POTATOES?
medium
A TOE.
POTA-TOE-S: the letters T, O and E sit side by side.
Add one letter to the front of a compass direction, and you get a big holiday meal. What is it?
medium
FEAST.
F plus EAST makes FEAST.
Dinner is at 5:00. The turkey needs 4 hours in the oven and 30 more minutes to rest on the counter. When should it go into the oven?
medium
12:30.
Counting back 30 minutes from 5:00 gives 4:30, and 4 hours before that is 12:30.
Riddles for teens and adults
Rearrange the letters of CARVE, what the host does to the turkey, to get what you do when you really want another slice.
hard
CRAVE.
CARVE and CRAVE use the same five letters.
Rearrange the letters of BASTE, what a cook does to keep a turkey juicy, to get a big wild animal.
hard
BEAST.
BASTE and BEAST use the same five letters.
Rearrange the letters of TABLE to get the sound a sheep makes.
hard
BLEAT.
TABLE and BLEAT use the same five letters.
I'm the bird on the table, and in bowling I'm three strikes in a row. What am I?
hard
A turkey.
Bowlers call three strikes in a row a turkey.
Put the same letter in front of ARVEST, AM and OLIDAY to make three words you might hear at Thanksgiving. Which letter is it?
hard
H.
H makes HARVEST, HAM and HOLIDAY.
Which word for very serious and gloomy is hiding at the end of PILGRIM?
hard
GRIM.
PIL-GRIM: the last four letters spell GRIM.
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.