150 2nd-Grade Riddles (Easy Words, School, Animals, and Math)

Second graders are excellent riddle critics. If the clue is too obvious, they know immediately, and if the answer makes no sense, they will absolutely tell you.

How I Picked These 2nd-Grade Riddles

I kept the vocabulary simple, the answers familiar, and the clues short enough to read aloud. Most can be solved without special facts, and the few math riddles use addition, subtraction, counting, or basic shapes.

School Riddles for 2nd Grade

1. I have pages and a cover, but I am not a bed. What am I?
   Answer: A book.
2. I have a point and help you write, but I am not a finger. What am I?
   Answer: A pencil.
3. I make pencil mistakes disappear. What am I?
   Answer: An eraser.
4. I hold your books on your back. What am I?
   Answer: A backpack.
5. I have numbers and hands but no fingers. What am I?
   Answer: A clock.
6. I hang on a wall and show days and months. What am I?
   Answer: A calendar.
7. I am full of words and tell you what they mean. What am I?
   Answer: A dictionary.
8. I am long and straight and help you measure. What am I?
   Answer: A ruler.
9. I have many colors and can draw without a paintbrush. What am I?
   Answer: Crayons.
10. I have two blades and two finger holes. What am I?
    Answer: Scissors.
11. I stick paper together but I am not tape. What am I?
    Answer: Glue.
12. I am white or lined and wait for your words. What am I?
    Answer: Paper.
13. I sit under your schoolwork and have four legs. What am I?
    Answer: A desk.
14. I have a seat and a back, but I cannot sit. What am I?
    Answer: A chair.
15. Teachers write on me, and the whole class can see. What am I?
    Answer: A board.
16. I ring to tell students when a class begins or ends. What am I?
    Answer: A school bell.
17. I am a quiet place with shelves full of stories. What am I?
    Answer: A library.
18. I keep your place in a book but do not read. What am I?
    Answer: A bookmark.
19. I get sharper as I get shorter. What am I?
    Answer: A pencil.
20. I carry your lunch but never eat it. What am I?
    Answer: A lunchbox.
21. I have keys but open no doors, and you type on me. What am I?
    Answer: A keyboard.
22. I move a pointer on a computer screen but squeak only in cartoons. What am I?
    Answer: A mouse.
23. I show pictures and words on a computer. What am I?
    Answer: A screen or monitor.
24. I have a cap and leave colorful marks. What am I?
    Answer: A marker.
25. I hold many sheets together with a small metal bite. What am I?
    Answer: A stapler.
26. I am a room where you may paint, cut, and create. What am I?
    Answer: An art room.
27. I am a room where you may run, jump, and play games. What am I?
    Answer: A gym.
28. I am where students eat lunch at school. What am I?
    Answer: A cafeteria.
29. I am a place with swings and slides. What am I?
    Answer: A playground.
30. I carry students to school but I am not a backpack. What am I?
    Answer: A school bus.

Animal and Food Riddles

31. I say meow and like to chase toy mice. What am I?
    Answer: A cat.
32. I bark, wag my tail, and may fetch a ball. What am I?
    Answer: A dog.
33. I am pink, live on a farm, and like mud. What am I?
    Answer: A pig.
34. I give milk and say moo. What am I?
    Answer: A cow.
35. I have wool and say baa. What am I?
    Answer: A sheep.
36. I have a long neck and spots. What am I?
    Answer: A giraffe.
37. I have a trunk but I am not a tree. What am I?
    Answer: An elephant.
38. I hop and carry my baby in a pouch. What am I?
    Answer: A kangaroo.
39. I am black and white and look like I wear stripes. What am I?
    Answer: A zebra.
40. I swing through trees and like bananas in many stories. What am I?
    Answer: A monkey.
41. I have feathers, wings, and a beak. What am I?
    Answer: A bird.
42. I swim, have fins, and live in water. What am I?
    Answer: A fish.
43. I carry my house on my back and move slowly. What am I?
    Answer: A snail.
44. I have eight legs and spin a web. What am I?
    Answer: A spider.
45. I start as a caterpillar and later have wings. What am I?
    Answer: A butterfly.
46. I buzz and help flowers make seeds and fruit. What am I?
    Answer: A bee.
47. I am red with black spots and crawl on leaves. What am I?
    Answer: A ladybug.
48. I waddle, swim, and say quack. What am I?
    Answer: A duck.
49. I have a hard shell and can pull my head inside. What am I?
    Answer: A turtle.
50. I roar and have a mane if I am a male. What am I?
    Answer: A lion.
51. I am yellow, curved, and peel before you eat me. What am I?
    Answer: A banana.
52. I am red or green, grow on trees, and have a core. What am I?
    Answer: An apple.
53. I am orange, crunchy, and grow underground. What am I?
    Answer: A carrot.
54. I am round, red, and often sliced for a sandwich. What am I?
    Answer: A tomato.
55. I am cold, sweet, and melt if you wait too long. What am I?
    Answer: Ice cream.
56. I am made from bread and can hide cheese or peanut butter inside. What am I?
    Answer: A sandwich.
57. I am popped from kernels and often eaten during movies. What am I?
    Answer: Popcorn.
58. I am round, baked, and often covered with cheese and toppings. What am I?
    Answer: Pizza.
59. I can be scrambled, fried, or boiled and come in a shell. What am I?
    Answer: An egg.
60. I am sweet, baked, and may have candles on top. What am I?
    Answer: A birthday cake.

Nature and Everyday Riddles

61. I shine in the sky during the day and help warm Earth. What am I?
    Answer: The sun.
62. I often shine at night and seem to change shape. What am I?
    Answer: The moon.
63. I twinkle in the night sky and am very far away. What am I?
    Answer: A star.
64. I fall from clouds and make puddles. What am I?
    Answer: Rain.
65. I am frozen water that falls softly in winter. What am I?
    Answer: Snow.
66. You cannot see me, but you can feel me move leaves. What am I?
    Answer: Wind.
67. I have roots, a trunk, branches, and leaves. What am I?
    Answer: A tree.
68. I grow from a seed and may have colorful petals. What am I?
    Answer: A flower.
69. I am green, soft, and grow across many yards. What am I?
    Answer: Grass.
70. I can be gray or white and float across the sky. What am I?
    Answer: A cloud.
71. I appear after rain when sunlight shines through water drops. What am I?
    Answer: A rainbow.
72. I am a large body of salty water. What am I?
    Answer: An ocean.
73. I flow downhill toward lakes or oceans. What am I?
    Answer: A river.
74. I am tall land with a high top. What am I?
    Answer: A mountain.
75. I am sand beside an ocean or lake. What am I?
    Answer: A beach.
76. I open when you turn my knob and close to keep a room private. What am I?
    Answer: A door.
77. You look through me to see outside. What am I?
    Answer: A window.
78. I show your face but never take a picture. What am I?
    Answer: A mirror.
79. I keep food cold and have a door and shelves. What am I?
    Answer: A refrigerator.
80. I heat food quickly and often beeps. What am I?
    Answer: A microwave.
81. I wash plates but never eat dinner. What am I?
    Answer: A dishwasher.
82. I clean your clothes with soap and water. What am I?
    Answer: A washing machine.
83. I tumble wet clothes until they are dry. What am I?
    Answer: A dryer.
84. I clean floors and make a loud hum. What am I?
    Answer: A vacuum.
85. I am soft, sit on a bed, and rest under your head. What am I?
    Answer: A pillow.
86. I keep you warm in bed and cover your body. What am I?
    Answer: A blanket.
87. I hold water while you brush your teeth. What am I?
    Answer: A sink.
88. I have bristles and clean your teeth. What am I?
    Answer: A toothbrush.
89. I am foamy or slippery and help wash hands. What am I?
    Answer: Soap.
90. I dry you after a bath or shower. What am I?
    Answer: A towel.

Easy Math Riddles for 2nd Grade

91. I am the number after 9. What number am I?
    Answer: 10.
92. I am the number before 20. What number am I?
    Answer: 19.
93. What is 5 + 5?
    Answer: 10.
94. What is 10 - 3?
    Answer: 7.
95. What is 7 + 2?
    Answer: 9.
96. What is 12 - 4?
    Answer: 8.
97. What is 8 + 6?
    Answer: 14.
98. What is 15 - 5?
    Answer: 10.
99. You have 3 apples and get 2 more. How many apples do you have?
    Answer: 5.
100. You have 9 crayons and give away 4. How many are left?
     Answer: 5.
101. Two hands have how many fingers altogether?
     Answer: 10.
102. Three pairs of socks contain how many socks?
     Answer: 6.
103. A triangle has how many sides?
     Answer: 3.
104. A square has how many equal sides?
     Answer: 4.
105. A rectangle has how many sides?
     Answer: 4.
106. A circle has how many corners?
     Answer: 0.
107. What number is halfway between 0 and 10?
     Answer: 5.
108. What is 10 + 10?
     Answer: 20.
109. What is 20 - 10?
     Answer: 10.
110. What is 6 + 6?
     Answer: 12.
111. What is 14 - 7?
     Answer: 7.
112. You have 4 quarters in a dollar. How many quarters make $1?
     Answer: 4.
113. You have 10 pennies. How many cents is that?
     Answer: 10 cents.
114. A week has how many days?
     Answer: 7.
115. A year has how many months?
     Answer: 12.
116. If today is Monday, what day comes next?
     Answer: Tuesday.
117. If you count by twos, what comes after 8?
     Answer: 10.
118. If you count by fives, what comes after 15?
     Answer: 20.
119. If you count by tens, what comes after 30?
     Answer: 40.
120. I am an even number between 4 and 8. What number am I?
     Answer: 6.

Funny Trick Riddles for 2nd Graders

121. What has a face and two hands but no arms or legs?
     Answer: A clock.
122. What gets wetter the more it dries?
     Answer: A towel.
123. What has teeth but cannot bite?
     Answer: A comb.
124. What has one eye but cannot see?
     Answer: A needle.
125. What has four legs but cannot walk?
     Answer: A table.
126. What has a neck but no head?
     Answer: A bottle.
127. What has a bed but never sleeps?
     Answer: A river.
128. What has a ring but no finger?
     Answer: A phone.
129. What has ears but cannot hear?
     Answer: Corn.
130. What has a mouth but cannot talk?
     Answer: A river.
131. What can you catch but not throw?
     Answer: A cold.
132. What goes up when rain comes down?
     Answer: An umbrella.
133. What can fill a room but takes up almost no space?
     Answer: Light.
134. What can travel around the world while staying in one corner?
     Answer: A stamp on an envelope.
135. What kind of tree can you hold in your hand?
     Answer: A palm.
136. What kind of coat is best put on wet?
     Answer: A coat of paint.
137. What begins with T, ends with T, and has tea inside?
     Answer: A teapot.
138. What has many keys but cannot open a lock?
     Answer: A piano.
139. What comes down but never goes back up?
     Answer: Rain.
140. What has words but never speaks?
     Answer: A book.
141. What can run but has no legs?
     Answer: Water.
142. What can fly without wings?
     Answer: Time.
143. What is full of holes but can still hold water?
     Answer: A sponge.
144. What has a thumb and four fingers but is not alive?
     Answer: A glove.
145. What kind of room has no doors or windows?
     Answer: A mushroom.
146. What can you break without touching it?
     Answer: A promise.
147. What belongs to you but other people use it more than you do?
     Answer: Your name.
148. What gets bigger the more you take away from it?
     Answer: A hole.
149. What has cities but no houses, water but no fish, and roads but no cars?
     Answer: A map.
150. What has a head and a tail but no body?
     Answer: A coin.

For a classroom game, I would start with ten easy ones, mix in three math riddles, and finish with one trick question. That keeps the room moving and gives different kinds of thinkers a chance to be the person who gets it first.