The world of J.R.R. Tolkien’s Middle-earth is filled with intrigue, mystery, and of course, riddles! “The Hobbit” famously featured a captivating riddle battle between Bilbo Baggins and Gollum.
Inspired by this magical tradition, we’ve gathered 145 challenging Hobbit riddles to test your wits. Whether you’re a Tolkien fan or just a lover of riddles, these will spark your imagination!
Classic Hobbit Riddles
These riddles embody the timeless tradition of riddling, much like the famous scene between Bilbo and Gollum.
Let your mind wander through the misty caves of Middle-earth as you try to solve these classics.
- Riddle: This thing all things devours: birds, beasts, trees, flowers; gnaws iron, bites steel; grinds hard stones to meal. Slays king, ruins town, and beats high mountain down.
Answer: Time - Riddle: Alive without breath, as cold as death; never thirsty, ever drinking, all in mail never clinking.
Answer: Fish - Riddle: A box without hinges, key, or lid, yet golden treasure inside is hid.
Answer: An egg - Riddle: Thirty white horses on a red hill. First they champ, then they stamp, then they stand still.
Answer: Teeth - Riddle: Voiceless it cries, wingless flutters, toothless bites, mouthless mutters.
Answer: The wind - Riddle: It cannot be seen, cannot be felt, cannot be heard, cannot be smelt. It lies behind stars and under hills, and empty holes it fills. It comes first and follows after, ends life, kills laughter.
Answer: Darkness
Riddles from the Shire
The simplicity of the Shire lends itself to these riddles, which reflect the peaceful yet curious nature of hobbits like Bilbo and Frodo.
- Riddle: What has roots as nobody sees, is taller than trees, up, up it goes, and yet never grows?
Answer: A mountain - Riddle: I have no wings, but I can fly. I never cry, but I make you weep. I have no teeth, yet I bite.
Answer: Smoke - Riddle: My life can be measured in hours, I serve by being devoured. Thin, I am quick; fat, I am slow. The wind is my foe.
Answer: A candle - Riddle: When set loose, I fly away, never so cursed as when I go astray.
Answer: An arrow - Riddle: The more you take, the more you leave behind.
Answer: Footsteps - Riddle: I go on one path yet leave two behind.
Answer: A wheelbarrow
Riddles of the Dwarves
These riddles reflect the gritty, determined spirit of the dwarves. Hardy and mysterious, they often delve into riddles of the earth and stone.
- Riddle: A cloud was my mother, the wind is my father, my son is the cool stream, and my daughter is the fruit of the land.
Answer: Rain - Riddle: Never ahead, ever behind, yet flying swiftly past; for a child, I last forever; for an adult, I’m gone too fast.
Answer: Time - Riddle: You heard me before, yet you hear me again. Then I die, until you call me again.
Answer: An echo - Riddle: You can see nothing else when you look in my face, I will look you in the eye, and I will never lie.
Answer: A mirror - Riddle: I’m lighter than air but a hundred men cannot lift me. Careful, I am fragile.
Answer: A bubble
Riddles of Elves
Elves are known for their wisdom and grace. Their riddles are often poetic and deeply tied to the natural world around them.
- Riddle: I walk without legs, fly without wings, and cry without eyes.
Answer: A cloud - Riddle: Bright as diamonds, loud as thunder, never still, a thing of wonder.
Answer: A waterfall - Riddle: What is broken without being held?
Answer: A promise - Riddle: I’m a path between high places, my home is within my arches.
Answer: A bridge - Riddle: What is long and slim, works well with a fan, and can be replaced with ease?
Answer: A feather - Riddle: The more you have of me, the less you see.
Answer: Fog
Riddles of Wizards
The magical wisdom of wizards lends itself to complex, sometimes perplexing riddles. These will surely make you think twice.
- Riddle: I speak without a mouth and hear without ears. I have no body, but I come alive with wind.
Answer: An echo - Riddle: The more you have of it, the less you see.
Answer: Darkness - Riddle: What is always coming, but never arrives?
Answer: Tomorrow - Riddle: 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 every person.
Answer: Pencil lead - Riddle: The more you cut me, the bigger I grow.
Answer: A hole
Riddles of the Forest
Mystery and magic live deep in the forest, where the trees seem to whisper and riddles can be found in every shadow.
- Riddle: I am seen in the water if seen in the sky, I am in the rainbow, a jay’s feather, and lapis lazuli.
Answer: Blue - Riddle: What can you catch but not throw?
Answer: A cold - Riddle: The one who makes it, sells it. The one who buys it never uses it. The one who uses it never knows they are using it.
Answer: A coffin - Riddle: I have lakes with no water, mountains with no stone, and cities with no buildings.
Answer: A map - Riddle: Forward I am heavy, but backward I am not.
Answer: A ton
Riddles of Dragons
Dragons are powerful, ancient, and full of wisdom. Their riddles often reflect their immense knowledge of the ages and their fierce pride.
- Riddle: I soar without wings, I see without eyes. I’ve traveled the universe to and fro. I’ve conquered the world, yet I’ve never been anywhere but home.
Answer: Imagination - Riddle: I can run but never walk. Wherever I go, thought follows close behind. What am I?
Answer: A nose - Riddle: I have keys but no locks. I have space but no room. You can enter, but you can’t go outside.
Answer: A keyboard - Riddle: The more you take, the more you leave behind.
Answer: Footsteps
Riddles of Men
Riddles from the world of men tend to reflect everyday experiences, filled with humor and practicality.
- Riddle: What has many keys but can’t open a single lock?
Answer: A piano - Riddle: What has a neck but no head?
Answer: A bottle - Riddle: The more it dries, the wetter it becomes.
Answer: A towel - Riddle: I get sharper the more I’m used and duller the longer I rest.
Answer: A mind
- Riddle: I’m not alive, but I can grow. I don’t have lungs, but I need air. What am I?
Answer: Fire - Riddle: I’m tall when I’m young, and short when I’m old. What am I?
Answer: A candle - Riddle: What comes once in a minute, twice in a moment, but never in a thousand years?
Answer: The letter “M” - Riddle: I have cities but no houses, forests but no trees, and rivers but no water. What am I?
Answer: A map - Riddle: What has a head, a tail, is brown, and has no legs?
Answer: A penny - Riddle: The more you take away, the larger I become. What am I?
Answer: A hole - Riddle: What gets bigger the more you take away from it?
Answer: A hole - Riddle: What has to be broken before you can use it?
Answer: An egg - Riddle: What runs but never walks, has a bed but never sleeps, has a mouth but never eats?
Answer: A river - Riddle: What has an eye but cannot see?
Answer: A needle - Riddle: I have keys but no locks. I have space but no room. You can enter, but you can’t go outside.
Answer: A keyboard - Riddle: I’m always in front of you but can’t be seen.
Answer: The future - Riddle: What has many needles but doesn’t sew?
Answer: A Christmas tree - Riddle: What can you hold in your left hand but not in your right?
Answer: Your right elbow - Riddle: What has to be broken before you can use it?
Answer: An egg - Riddle: What belongs to you, but other people use it more than you?
Answer: Your name - Riddle: What can travel around the world while staying in the same corner?
Answer: A stamp - Riddle: What goes up but never comes down?
Answer: Your age - Riddle: The more you have of me, the less you see. What am I?
Answer: Darkness - Riddle: What is full of holes but still holds water?
Answer: A sponge - Riddle: What has one eye but can’t see?
Answer: A needle - Riddle: What gets wetter the more it dries?
Answer: A towel - Riddle: What goes up and down but doesn’t move?
Answer: A staircase - Riddle: What can fill a room but takes up no space?
Answer: Light - Riddle: What has a neck but no head?
Answer: A bottle - Riddle: The more you take, the more you leave behind.
Answer: Footsteps - Riddle: I’m light as a feather, yet the strongest man can’t hold me for more than 5 minutes.
Answer: Breath - Riddle: What runs but never walks, has a mouth but never talks?
Answer: A river - Riddle: I have no feet, no hands, no wings, but I climb to the sky. What am I?
Answer: Smoke - Riddle: What comes down but never goes up?
Answer: Rain - Riddle: I’m tall when I’m young, and short when I’m old. What am I?
Answer: A candle - Riddle: What has keys but can’t open locks?
Answer: A piano - Riddle: If you drop me, I’m sure to crack, but give me a smile, and I’ll always smile back.
Answer: A mirror - Riddle: I can fill a room, but I take up no space. What am I?
Answer: Light - Riddle: What is so fragile that saying its name breaks it?
Answer: Silence - Riddle: What has a head, a tail, is brown, and has no legs?
Answer: A penny - Riddle: What can you break, even if you never pick it up or touch it?
Answer: A promise - Riddle: What has a face and two hands but no arms or legs?
Answer: A clock - Riddle: The more of this there is, the less you see. What is it?
Answer: Darkness - Riddle: What has 13 hearts but no organs?
Answer: A deck of cards - Riddle: What has four legs in the morning, two legs in the afternoon, and three legs in the evening?
Answer: A human (as a baby, adult, and elderly with a cane) - Riddle: What is as light as a feather, yet the strongest person can’t hold it for long?
Answer: Breath - Riddle: What can you hold in your right hand, but never in your left hand?
Answer: Your left hand - Riddle: What can run but never walks, has a mouth but never talks?
Answer: A river - Riddle: The more you have, the less you see.
Answer: Darkness - Riddle: I’m taken from a mine, and shut up in a wooden case, from which I am never released, and yet I am used by almost every person.
Answer: Pencil lead - Riddle: What has many keys but can’t open a single door?
Answer: A piano - Riddle: What has to be broken before you can use it?
Answer: An egg - Riddle: What runs, but never walks, has a mouth but never talks?
Answer: A river - Riddle: What can fill a room but takes up no space?
Answer: Light - Riddle: What has hands but cannot clap?
Answer: A clock - Riddle: What gets bigger the more you take away from it?
Answer: A hole - Riddle: What has a face, but no eyes?
Answer: A clock - Riddle: What can travel the world while staying in one corner?
Answer: A stamp - Riddle: What is black and white and red all over?
Answer: A newspaper - Riddle: The more it dries, the wetter it becomes.
Answer: A towel - Riddle: What flies without wings?
Answer: Time - Riddle: What can you catch but not throw?
Answer: A cold - Riddle: I speak without a mouth and hear without ears. I have no body, but I come alive with the wind.
Answer: An echo - Riddle: What begins with T, ends with T, and has T in it?
Answer: A teapot - Riddle: What has to be broken before you can use it?
Answer: An egg - Riddle: What has a heart that doesn’t beat?
Answer: An artichoke - Riddle: What has legs but doesn’t walk?
Answer: A table - Riddle: What runs but never walks?
Answer: A river - Riddle: I have many faces, expressions, and emotions, and I’m only one tap away. What am I?
Answer: An emoji - Riddle: The more you take, the more you leave behind.
Answer: Footsteps - Riddle: What gets sharper the more you use it?
Answer: Your brain - Riddle: What can you catch but not throw?
Answer: A cold - Riddle: What has 88 keys but can’t open a single door?
Answer: A piano - Riddle: I’m not alive, but I grow. I don’t have lungs, but I need air. What am I?
Answer: Fire - Riddle: What has hands but cannot clap?
Answer: A clock - Riddle: What can travel around the world while staying in one spot?
Answer: A stamp - Riddle: What has four legs in the morning, two in the afternoon, and three in the evening?
Answer: A human - Riddle: What is full of holes but still holds water?
Answer: A sponge - Riddle: What has a neck but no head?
Answer: A bottle - Riddle: What is always in front of you but can’t be seen?
Answer: The future - Riddle: I get smaller every time I take a bath.
Answer: A bar of soap - Riddle: I’m not alive, but I grow. I don’t have eyes, but I can cry. What am I?
Answer: An onion - Riddle: What is white when it’s dirty?
Answer: A chalkboard - Riddle: What has a ring but no finger?
Answer: A phone - Riddle: I can fly without wings and cry without eyes. Wherever I go, darkness flies.
Answer: A cloud - Riddle: What comes down but never goes up?
Answer: Rain - Riddle: The more you take, the more you leave behind.
Answer: Footsteps
Conclusion
This collection of 145 Hobbit riddles takes you on a journey through the magical lands of Middle-earth.
From classic riddles that have stood the test of time to brain-bending puzzles that will challenge even the wisest of wizards, these riddles are sure to delight and entertain.
Whether you’re hosting a riddle night or just looking for a mental challenge, you’ll find endless joy in these riddles inspired by hobbits, elves, dwarves, and more.