Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.
Definition: Riddle |
RiddleNoun1. A difficult problem. 2. A coarse sieve (as for gravel). Verb1. Pierce many times; "The bullets riddled his body". 2. Set a riddle. 3. Separate with a riddle, as grain from chaff. 4. Speak in riddles. 5. Explain a riddle. Source: WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved. |
Date "riddle" was first used in popular English literature: sometime before 1010. (references) |
| Domain | Definition |
Bible | Riddle (Heb. hodah). The oldest and, strictly speaking, the only example of a riddle was that propounded by Samson (Judg. 14:12-18). The parabolic prophecy in Ezek. 17:2-18 is there called a "riddle." It was rather, however, an allegory. The word "darkly" in 1 Cor. 13:12 is the rendering of the Greek enigma; marg., "in a riddle." Source: Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary. |
Literature | Riddle Josephus relates how Hiram, King of Tyre, and Solomon had once a contest in riddles, when Solomon won a large sum of money; but he subsequently lost it to Abdemon, one of Hiram's subjects. Riddle. Plutarch states that Homer died of chagrin because he could not solve a certain riddle. (See Sphinx.) Father of riddles. So the AbbéCotin dubbed himself, but posterity has not confirmed his right to the title. (1604-1682.) (See Ree.). Source: Brewer's Dictionary. |
Mining | A. A barrel-shaped, revolving perforated drum in which blank coins are washed and dried after passing through a bath of sulfuric acid b. A coarse sieve. The large pieces of ore and rock picked out by hand are called knockings. The riddlings remain on the riddle; the fell goes through c. A sieve used to separate foundry sand or other granular materials into various particle-size grades or free such a material of undesirableforeign matter. (references) |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)
A riddle is a puzzle, consisting of text with a question to answer.Riddles have a distinguished literary ancestry, although the contemporary sort of conundrum that passes under the name of "riddle" may not make this obvious. Riddles occur extensively in Old English poetry, and also in the Old Norse literature of the Elder Edda and the skalds. The Exeter Book, a manuscript in Old English, preserves almost sixty versified riddles from the Old English literature. An example:
The answer called for by the poem is bookworm. The general technique is to obliquely refer to the subject by kennings and other sorts of figurative language; since kennings formed such an important element of alliterative verse forms in the Germanic languages, the riddles served the dual purpose of puzzling the poet's audience and teaching the lore needed to successfully use or understand the poetic language. The god Odin was a master of riddle lore, and sparred with several of his foes using contests of riddles. In the Vafthruthnismal, Odin defeats his foe by posing a question only he could possibly know the answer to.
- Moððe word fræt. Me þæt þuhte
- wrætlicu wyrd, þa ic þæt wundor gefrægn,
- þæt se wyrm forswealg wera gied sumes,
- þeof in þystro, þrymfæstne cwide
- ond þæs strangan staþol. Stælgiest ne wæs
- wihte þy gleawra, þe he þam wordum swealg.
- A moth ate words. I thought that was quite curious, that a mere worm, a thief in the dark, ate what a man wrote, his brilliant language and its strong foundation. The thief got no wiser for all that he fattened himself on words.
In Greek mythology, riddles were the province of the Sphinx, a female monster who challenged passersby with riddles; those who failed to guess them were devoured. She famously asked Oedipus, "What is the animal that goes about on four legs in the morning, on two legs at noon, and on three in the evening?" The correct answer given by Oedipus was "Man," who crawls as a baby, walks upright as an adult, and goes with the help of a walking stick when elderly.
In J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit, Gollum challenges Bilbo Baggins to a riddle competition; Bilbo wins the competition by asking Gollum, "What have I got in my pocket?", which Gollum could not answer. The answer, of course, was the One Ring, which Gollum had lost and Bilbo had since found.
In the Batman comic books, one of the hero's best known enemies is The Riddler who is personally compelled supply clues about his upcoming crimes to his enemies in the form of riddles and puzzles. Stereotypically, they are the kind of simple riddles as described below, but modern treatments generally prefer to have the character use more sophisticated puzzles.
Contemporary riddles typically use puns and double meanings for humorous effect, rather than to puzzle the butt of the joke, as in:
These riddles are now mostly children's humour and games rather than literary compositions.
- When is a door not a door?
- When it's ajar.
- What's black and white and red all over?
- A newspaper.
- What's brown and sounds like a bell?
- Dung.
- Why are all numbers afraid of number seven?
- Because seven eight nine.
A close relation the riddle is the trick question, which can be used to humiliate the answerer. They generally either have no good answer at all, or have a number of natural answers of which one or more can under closer scrutiny be ridiculed.
Some examples:
See also: knock-knock joke
- Are you a virgin, mister? (The particular answer does not matter, as long as it is boldly delivered.)
- Boxers or Briefs? (Either answer is okay, but don't answer: "Depends.")
- Have you stopped beating your wife?
Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "Riddle."
(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)
Riddle is a city located in Douglas County, Oregon. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 1,014.Geography
Riddle is located at 42°57'6" North, 123°21'54" West (42.951605, -123.365052)1. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 1.7 km² (0.7 mi²). 1.7 km² (0.7 mi²) of it is land and none of the area is covered with water.Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there are 1,014 people, 381 households, and 265 families residing in the city. The population density is 584.3/km² (1,519.6/mi²). There are 406 housing units at an average density of 234.0/km² (608.5/mi²). The racial makeup of the city is 94.48% White, 0.00% African American, 2.27% Native American, 0.10% Asian, 0.00% Pacific Islander, 0.20% from other races, and 2.96% from two or more races. 1.97% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race. There are 381 households out of which 36.0% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.4% are married couples living together, 13.6% have a female householder with no husband present, and 30.2% are non-families. 24.4% of all households are made up of individuals and 10.0% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.66 and the average family size is 3.15. In the city the population is spread out with 31.2% under the age of 18, 9.4% from 18 to 24, 25.7% from 25 to 44, 21.8% from 45 to 64, and 11.9% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 33 years. For every 100 females there are 96.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 84.7 males. The median income for a household in the city is $28,750, and the median income for a family is $37,159. Males have a median income of $31,438 versus $27,232 for females. The per capita income for the city is $13,666. 19.0% of the population and 16.1% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total people living in poverty, 21.1% are under the age of 18 and 10.6% are 65 or older.Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "Riddle, Oregon."
| The following table is compiled from various sources, across various languages. When English abbreviations or acronyms come from a non-English source, this is noted. | |||
| Entry | Source | Expression | Field |
RIDDLE | English | Rapid Information and Document Delivery in Library Environments | N/A |
Source: compiled by the editor, based on several corpora (additional references). | |||
Synonyms: RiddleSynonyms: brain-teaser (n), conundrum (n), enigma (n), screen (v). (additional references) |
| Context | Synonyms within Context (source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus). |
Arrangement | Verb: reduce to order, bring into order; introduce order into; rally. arrange, dispose, place, form; put in order, set in order, place in order; set out, collocate, pack, marshal, range, size, rank, group, parcel out, allot, distribute, deal; cast the parts, assign the parts; dispose of, assign places to; assort, sort; sift, riddle; put to rights, set to rights, put into shape, put in trim, put in array; apportion. |
Sieve, riddle, screen, sorter. | |
Cleanness | Brush; broom, besom, mop, rake, shovel, sieve, riddle, screen, filter; blotter. |
Discovery | Solve, resolve, elucidate; unriddle, unravel, unlock, crack, crack open; pick up, open the lock; find a clue, find clew a to, find the key to the riddle; interpret; disclose. |
Opening | Sieve, cullender, colander; cribble, riddle, screen; honeycomb. |
Perforate, pierce, empierce, tap, bore, drill; mine; (scoop out); tunnel; transpierce, transfix; enfilade, impale, spike, spear, gore, spit, stab, pink, puncture, lance, stick, prick, riddle, punch; stave in. | |
Secret | Enigma, riddle, puzzle, nut to crack, conundrum, charade, rebus, logogriph; monogram, anagram; Sphinx; crux criticorum. |
Unintelligibility | Paradox, oxymoron; riddle, enigma, puzzle; (secret); diagnus vindice nodus; sealed book; steganography, freemasonry. |
| Source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus. | |
Crosswords: Riddle |
| English words defined with "riddle": Areed ♦ Cribble ♦ Logogriph ♦ Ree, Riddling ♦ screen ♦ Unriddle. (references) |
| Specialty definitions using "riddle": Abdication ♦ CARRY WITCHET ♦ Florentius ♦ Go on all Fours ♦ Riddle of Claret, rotary screen, rotary sieve, rotating screen. (references) |
| Etymologies containing "riddle": Unriddle. (references) |
| Domain | Usage | |
Screenplays | It's a riddle. What's the Elvish word for friend (The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring; writing credit: Frances Walsh) Here is a riddle to solve if you can; What makes a monster and what makes a man (The Hunchback of Notre Dame; writing credit: Victor Hugo; Irene Mecchi) When the boat arrives from the mainland, there will be ten dead bodies, and a riddle no one can solve on Indian Island (And Then There Were None; writing credit: Agatha Christie; Dudley Nichols) Emma, you didn't ask me to contribute a riddle. (Emma; writing credit: Douglas McGrath) | |
Lyrics | It's the world's oldest unsolved riddle (That's The Way Love Is; performing artist: Bobby Darin) Life ain’t nothin’ but a funy funny riddle (Thank God I’m A Country Boy; performing artist: John Denver) | |
Clever | If You Can't Dazzle Them With Brilliance, Riddle Them With Bullets. (references; author: unknown) | |
Movie/TV Titles | Riddle of the Rook (1973) The Riddle of Lumen (1972) Riddle Ranch (1935) The Riddle Trail (1928) Riddle Gawne (1918) | |
Song Titles | Even Angels Fall (performing artist: Jessica Riddle) | |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | ||
| Domain | Title | ||
Books |
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Theater & Movies | |||
Music |
| ||
High Tech |
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Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |||
| Thumbnail | Description & Credit | Thumbnail | Description & Credit |
 | Mule's Ears (Wyethia helianthoides) near the Riddle Brother's ranch on Steens Mountain in Southeastern Oregon. Credit: Mark Armstrong. |  | Proud adopter with Kiger Mustang at Riddle Mountain Wild Bear adoption show at Longview, WA. Credit: Mark Armstrong. |
 | General Riddle Brother's Ranch with Dave Harmon. Credit: Scott Moore. |  | Tiger Swallotail Butterflies at Riddle Brothers Ranch. Credit: Scott Moore. |
 | Little Blitzen Valley and part of the Riddle Brothers Ranch historic district. Credit: Mark Armstrong. |  | The main house of the Riddle Brothers ranch. Credit: Unknown. |
 | Mary Margaret Riddle. Credit: National Library of Medicine. |  | A riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma -- Churchill. Credit: Library of Congress. |
 | Riddle. Credit: Library of Congress. |  | Winema or Tobey Riddle and son--Celebrated Modoc Indian who saved Col. Meacham's life in 1873. Credit: Library of Congress. |
Source: pictures compiled by the editor from various references; see picture credits. | |||
| Author | Quotation |
Winston Churchill | I cannot forecast to you the action of Russia. It is a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma; but perhaps there is a key. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | |
| Title | Author | Quote |
Tangled Tale | Carroll, Lewis | A few yards farther on, I fell in with Smith, and to him I propounded the same riddle. |
Les Miserables | Hugo, Victor | The riddle was more impenetrable than ever |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | ||
| Subject | Topic | Quote |
Health | Although answers may seem slow in coming, researchers are working hard to solve the painful riddle of IC. Some scientists receive funds from the Federal Government to help support their research, while others receive support from their employing institution, drug companies, or patient support associations. (references) | |
Lexicography | Devil's Dictionary | ABDICATION, n. An act whereby a sovereign attests his sense of the high temperature of the throne. Poor Isabella's Dead, whose abdication Set all tongues wagging in the Spanish nation. For that performance 'twere unfair to scold her: She wisely left a throne too hot to hold her. To History she'll be no royal riddle -- Merely a plain parched pea that jumped the griddle. G.J. |
Source: compiled by the editor from ICON Group International, Inc.; see credits. | ||
| "Riddle" is generally used as a noun (singular) -- approximately 54.20% of the time. "Riddle" is used about 238 times out of a sample of 100 million words spoken or written in English. Its rank is based on over 700,000 words used in the English language. Some parts-of-speech are not covered due to the samples used by the British National Corpus. (note: percents less than one-hundredth of one percent have been omitted) |
| Parts of Speech | Percent | Usage per 100 Million Words | Rank in English |
| Noun (singular) | 54.2% | 129 | 28,132 |
| Noun (proper) | 42.02% | 100 | 32,668 |
| Lexical Verb (base form) | 2.52% | 6 | 143,867 |
| Lexical Verb (infinitive) | 0.84% | 2 | 245,945 |
| Noun (common) | 0.42% | 1 | 339,140 |
| Total | 100.00% | 238 | N/A |
Source: compiled by the editor from several corpora; see credits.
| The following table summarizes the usage of "riddle" based on a population census conducted in the United States. Ranks and frequencies are based on all names reported and classified. |
| Name | Usage/Gender | Usage per 100 million Persons | Rank in USA |
| Riddle | Last name | 14,000 | 871 |
| Source: compiled by the editor from several corpora; see credits. | |||
| The following table summarizes names derived from the word "riddle". | |||
| Name | Gender | Language | Meaning |
| Mehida | N/A | Biblical | A riddle |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references.
| |||
1. Riddle, OR (city, FIPS 61850) |
Expressions using "riddle": ask a riddle ♦ find the key to the riddle ♦ Glen Riddle Lima ♦ guess a riddle ♦ James Riddle Hoffa ♦ pose as a riddle ♦ riddle canon ♦ riddle smb. with bullets ♦ riddle with bullets ♦ riddle with holes. Additional references. | |
| Hyphenated Usage | |
Beginning with "riddle": riddle-me-ree, riddle-me-ree!, riddle-style. | |
Ending with "riddle": Embry-riddle. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
| The following statistics estimate the number of searches per day across the major English-language search engines as identified by various trade publications. Hyperlinks lead to commercial use of the expression at Amazon.com. |
| Expression | Frequency per Day | Expression | Frequency per Day |
riddle | 5,392 | hospital memorial riddle | 51 |
embry riddle | 416 | net riddle | 50 |
joke and riddle | 195 | jessica riddle | 44 |
answer to riddle | 191 | bible riddle | 39 |
hard riddle | 169 | einstein riddle | 38 |
riddle of the sphinx | 167 | emery riddle | 37 |
embry riddle aeronautical university | 155 | difficult riddle | 35 |
gry riddle | 140 | hint riddle sphinx | 31 |
riddle brain teasers | 130 | riddle word | 31 |
harvey paul riddle | 111 | fun riddle | 29 |
kid riddle | 108 | cheat riddle sphinx | 29 |
einsteins riddle | 105 | adult riddle | 27 |
jewelry riddle | 93 | free riddle | 27 |
embry riddle university | 90 | day riddle | 26 |
funny riddle | 80 | logic riddle | 26 |
riddle tom | 78 | marvolo riddle tom | 24 |
math riddle | 74 | hospital riddle | 23 |
riddle sphinx through walk | 64 | love riddle | 22 |
puzzle riddle | 60 | ancient riddle | 22 |
child riddle | 52 | emory riddle | 22 |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |||
| Language | Translations for "riddle"; alternative meanings/domain in parentheses. | |
Albanian | shoshit (screen, sift, winnow), shoshë (cribble, screen, sieve, sift), njëenjezë, kaloj në shoshë, i them gjëagjëze, gjëzë (puzzle), gjëagjëzë, bëj shoshë me. (various references) | |
Arabic | معضلة (dilemma, enigma, mystery, problem, puzzle), لغز (clue, conundrum, enigma, mystery, mystify, mystique, puzzle, puzzlement, quiz, secret), حير (baffle, befog, bewilder, confound, distract, floor, flummox, fluster, mystify, nonplus, perplex, put off one's fears, puzzle, vex), غربل (garble, screen, screen out, sift, weed, winnow), غربال (screen, sieve), عمى (blind, blindness, camouflage, darkness, mystify), خمن (appraise, estimate, evaluate, guess, infer, size up, speculate, suppose, surmise), خرق (breach, break, breaking, infraction, infringe, infringement, pierce, puncture, rent, transgress, transgression, violation), أحجية (enigma, mystery, mystique, puzzle, puzzlement), ثقب كالغربال. (various references) | |
Bulgarian | отгатвам (guess, hit, nose, psyche, tell), пресявам (bolt, griddle, screen, sieve, sift, winnow), прояден от, пълен (absolute, alive, all out, ample, beefy, clear, compendious, complete, corpulent, dead, entire, exhaustive, explicit, fat, fleshy, fraught, full, grand, implicit, intact, integral, integrate, lousy, murky, out and out, outright, overall, overblown, perfect, plenary, portly, profound, pursy, radical, rank, replenished, replete, right, round, sheer, stark, stout, substantial, teetotal, thoroughgoing, thorough-paced, total, unabbreviated, universal, unmitigated, unqualified, unreserved, utter, vast, very, well fed, whole, whole-footed, whole-hog), едро сито (grate), екран (screen, shield), загадка (crux, enigma, problem, puzzle), правя на решето, надупчвам, сея (inseminate, screen, seed, sow), гатанка (conundrum), говоря със загадки, щит (aegis, plate, screen, shield), разбирам (apprehend, catch on, comprehend, cotton, discover, fathom, figure out, find out, follow, grasp, grip, have, latch, make out, penetrate, perceive, pick up, realize, rumble, see, see through, sense, take, take in, think, understand, work out), разбулвам, решето (colander, cullender, screen, separator, sieve, sifter), зачесвам. (various references) | |
Chinese | 谜语, 謎語 (conundrum), 謎 . (various references) | |
Czech | záhada (puzzle, puzzlement), prodìravit (hole, perforate), luštit, hádanka (conundrum, enigma, mystery, problem, puzzle, puzzlement), řešeto (sieve). (various references) | |
Danish | sold (round hole screen), harpemaskine (screen), harpe (harp, screen), ballastrensemaskine (screen). (various references) | |
Dutch | raadsel (enigma, mystery, puzzle), puzzel (enigma, puzzle). (various references) | |
Esperanto | enigmo (enigma, puzzle). (various references) | |
Faeroese | gáta (enigma, puzzle). (various references) | |
Finnish | arvoitus (enigma, puzzle). (various references) | |
French | énigme. (various references) | |
Frisian | riedling (enigma, puzzle). (various references) | |
German | Rätsel (conundrum, enigma, enigmas, mystery, problem, puzzle, riddles). (various references) | |
Greek | κοσκινίζω (bolt, screen, sieve, sift). (various references) | |
Hebrew | מליצ" (figurative language, phraseology, trope), לחו" חי"", לכבור (sift), ל פות (comb, scrutinize, sieve, sift, winnow), תעלומ" (enigma, mystery, mystique, puzzle, secret), חי"" (enigma, parable, puzzle), פ" (screen, sieve). (various references) | |
Hungarian | talány (conundrum, enigma, puzzle), rejtvény (conundrum, enigma, puzzle, quiz, rebus), találós kérdés (conundrum), rejtély (arcana, arcanum, conundrum, mystery, secret). (various references) | |
Indonesian | cangkriman (conundrum). (various references) | |
Italian | crivello (sieve). (various references) | |
Japanese Kanji | 謎謎 (enigma, puzzle), 謎々 (enigma, puzzle), 謎 (enigma, puzzle), 判じ物 (puzzle). (various references) | |
Japanese Katakana | なぞなぞ (enigma, puzzle), なぞ (calm, enigma, lull, puzzle), は"じもの (puzzle). (various references) | |
Korean | 수수께끼 (Puzzle). (various references) | |
Manx | ridlan (cribble, sieve), reealley (punishment, riddling, shake, shake down, sieve, sift, sifting), raa dorraghey (conundrum), creearey (pan, sieve, sift), creear (sieve). (various references) | |
Papiamen | pùzel (enigma, puzzle), misterio (enigma, puzzle, secret), charada (enigma, puzzle). (various references) | |
Pig Latin | iddleray.(various references) | |
Polish | zagadka (enigma, puzzle). (various references) | |
Portuguese | enigma (conundrum, enigma, logogryph, mystery, poser, puzzle, quiz), adivinhação (divination, enigma, fortune-telling, indication, omen, portent, presage, puzzle). (various references) | |
Romanian | vorbi în parabole, strãpunge (Gore, penetrate, perforate, Pierce, pin, pink, puncture, Ray, stab, transfix, tunnel), sitã (Bolter, griddle, rose, screen, sieve, strainer, Tammy), prescurta (abbreviate, abridge, condense, curtail, reduce, shorten), lãmuri (clear, clinch, define, disembroil, disentangle, elucidate, enlighten, explain, illuminate, illumine, illustrate, justify, lighten, show, solve, understand, unravel, untie), ghicitoare (enigma, fortune teller, puzzle), explica (account, account for, construe, define, elucidate, enlighten, enunciate, explain, explicate, expound, illuminate, illumine, interpret, justify, show, untie, vindicate), enigmã (conundrum, crux, enigma, mystery, puzzle), desluşi (discern, discover, distinguish, elucidate, explain, interpret, read, recognize, unravel), ciurui (bolt, gush, screen, sieve), ciur (Bolter, griddle, screen, sieve, sifter, strainer, Tammy), cimiliturã, cerne (bolt, distinguish, drizzle, screen, sieve, sift, spit). (various references) | |
Russian | загадка (conundrum, crux, enigma, puzzle, puzzlement, why). (various references) | |
Scottish | criathar (a sieve, sieve). (various references) | |
Serbo-Croatian | rešeto (griddle, sieve), zagonetka (conundrum, enigma, mystery, puzzle), izrešetati. (various references) | |
Spanish | criba (Jigger, screen). (various references) | |
Sranan | laytori (enigma, puzzle). (various references) | |
Swedish | gåta (conundrum, enigma, puzzle), rebus (rebus). (various references) | |
Thai | เกมทายปริศนา, พู"เป็นปริศนา, การถ่ายปัสสาวะ, ตอบปริศนา, ตะแกรงร่อน, ร่อน"้วยตะแกรง, ระ"มยิง, ปัญหา (case, grief, issue, malady). (various references) | |
Turkish | bulmaca (crossword, enigma, puzzle). (various references) | |
Turkmen | tapmaзa, matal. (various references) | |
Ukrainian | решето (bout, reddle, screen, sieve), та"мниця (arcana, hugger mugger, mystery, privity, secrecy), говорити загадками, загадка (crux, enigma, puzzle, puzzlement, x), просівати (sieve, sift, winnow). (various references) | |
Vietnamese | vật khó hiểu, máy s ng (bolt, bolter), cái s ng (bolt, sieve), điều khó hiểu câu đố người khó hiểu, điều bí ẩn. (various references) | |
Welsh | rhidyllio (sift), rhidyll (sieve), pos (conundrum, puzzle), gogrwn (sift), gogr (sieve), dychymyg (device, fancy, imagination), adameg (speech, tale). (various references) | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various translation references. | ||
| Language | Period | Translations |
| Latin | 500 BCE-Modern | ænigma, argumentis, argumentorum, argumentum, cribri, cribro, enigma, enigmata, enigmate, enigmatibus, enigmatum, griphus. (various references) |
| Old English | 450-1100 | giedd, hridder. (various references) |
| Middle English | 1100-1500 | ridelle. (various references) |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | ||
| Language | Date | Source | Ezekiel Chapter 17, Verse 2 |
| Greek (transliterated) | 250 BC | Septuagint | Uie anqrwpou dihghsai dihghma kai eipon parabolhn proV ton oikon tou israhl |
| Latin | 405 | Vulgate | Fili hominis propone enigma et narra parabolam ad domum Israhel |
| Middle English | 1395 | Wyclif | Seyynge, Sone of man, put forth a derk ensaumple, or hard questioun, and telle a parable to the hous of Israel; and thou shalt seye, |
| Jacobean English | 1611 | King James | Son of man, put forth a riddle, and speak a parable unto the house of Israel; |
| Victorian English | 1833 | Webster | Son of man, put forth a riddle, and speak a parable to the house of Israel; |
| Basic English | 1964 | Ogden | Son of man, give out a dark saying, and make a comparison for the children of Israel, |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |||
| Language | Ezekiel Chapter 17, Verse 2 |
| Cebuano | Anak sa tawo, magpagula ka sa usa ka tigmo, ug magsulti ka sa usa ka sambingay ngadto sa balay sa Israel; |
| Croatian | "Sine èovjeèji, smisli zagonetku i iznesi prispodobu domu Izraelovu! Reci: |
| Danish | Menneskesøn, fremsæt en Gåde og tal i Lignelse til Israels Slægt; |
| Dutch | Mensenkind, stel een raadsel voor, en gebruik een gelijkenis tot het huis Israels, |
| Finnish | "Ihmislapsi, esitä arvoitus ja lausu vertaus Israelin heimolle |
| French | Fils de l`homme, propose une énigme, dis une parabole la maison d`Israël! |
| German | Du Menschenkind, lege doch dem Hause Israel ein Rätsel vor und ein Gleichnis |
| Indonesian-Bahasa Sehari-hari | "Hai manusia fana, ceritakan kepada orang-orang Israel perumpamaan, |
| Indonesian-Terjemahan Lama | Hai anak Adam! adakanlah suatu penerka dan karangkanlah suatu perumpamaan bagi bangsa Israel; |
| Italian | «Figlio dell'uomo, proponi un enigma e racconta una parabola agli Israeliti. |
| Maori | E te tama a te tangata, whakaaria atu he paki, korerotia atu he kupu whakarite ki te whare o Iharaira; |
| Norwegian | Menneskesønn! Fremsett en gåte for Israels hus og tal til dem i en lignelse |
| Portuguese | Filho do homem, propõe um enigma, e profere uma alegoria casa de Israel; |
| Rumanian | ,,Fiul omului, spune o vorbq cu tklc, spune o pildq casei lui Israel, |
| Swedish | Du människobarn, förelägg Israels hus en gåta, och tala till det en liknelse |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
Derivations | |
Words beginning with "riddle": riddled, riddler, riddlers, riddles. (additional references) | |
Words ending with "riddle": griddle, unriddle. (additional references) | |
Words containing "riddle": griddlecake, griddlecakes, griddled, griddles, unriddled, unriddles. (additional references) | |
| |
"Riddle" is suggested in spellcheckers for the following: Criddle, diddledy, irdle, liddle, niddle, Raindle, reddled, Reddler, Reddoe, redleg, redler, Reidle, riddel, riddem, riddl, ridje, ridler, ridlet, ridley, Rindel, Rindler, Risdale, Ruddel, Ruddle, tridle. (additional references) | |
| Source: compiled by the editor, based on several corpora (additional references). | |
| # of Phoneme Matches | Pronunciation | Word(s) rhyming with "riddle" (pronounced ri"dul) |
| 4 | -i" d u l | fiddle, middle, Piddle, twiddle, widdle. |
| 3 | -d u l | addle, alkaloidal, antipodal, astraddle, backpedal, beadle, Bedell, befuddle, bindle, Boodle, bridal, bridle, Brindle, bundle, caboodle, candle, caudal, caudle, Coddle, colloidal, cradle, cuddle, dawdle, Doodle, dwindle, feudal, fondle, genocidal, girdle, handle, homicidal, huddle, hurdle, idle, idol, idyll, spindle, straddle, suicidal, supermodel, swindle, intermodal, intertidal, kindle, ladle, manhandle, medal, meddle, minoxidil, mishandle, modal, model, mollycoddle, muddle, needle, noodle, paddle, panhandle, pedal, peddle, poodle, puddle, pyramidal, rekindle, remodel, rhizoidal, Ruddle, Rundle, saddle, sandal, scandal, Seidel, sidle, tidal, toddle, trundle, twaddle, Tweedle, unbundle, vandal, Waddle, Wedel, Windle, yodel. |
Source: compiled by the editor (additional references); see credits. | ||
Scrabble® Enable2K-Verified Anagrams | |
Direct Anagrams: dirled, dreidl. | |
| Words within the letters "d-d-e-i-l-r" | |
-1 letter: dried, idled, idler, redid, riled. | |
-2 letters: deil, deli, died, diel, dire, dirl, idle, ired, lied, lier, lire, redd, ride, riel, rile. | |
-3 letters: del, did, die, eld, ire, led, lei, lid, lie, red, rei, rid. | |
-4 letters: de, ed, el, er, id, li, re. | |
| Words containing the letters "d-d-e-i-l-r" | |
+1 letter: bridled, diddler, dreidel, dreidls, drilled, fiddler, girdled, griddle, middler, piddler, riddled, riddler, riddles, tiddler. | |
+2 letters: brindled, cloddier, cuddlier, deadlier, derailed, diddlers, dieldrin, dihedral, dreidels, dribbled, driveled, drizzled, fiddlers, griddled, griddles, middlers, piddlers, puddlier, reddling, redialed, redlined, regilded, riddlers, tiddlers, trindled, twiddler, unriddle, wildered. | |
+3 letters: begirdled, birdlimed, daredevil, delivered, demiworld, dieldrins, dihedrals, drivelled, engirdled, laddering, rebuilded, redialled, redrilled, rekindled, ridiculed, soldiered, tendriled, treddling, twiddlers, twiddlier, unbridled, underlaid, undrilled, unriddled, unriddles, worldwide. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. SCRABBLE® is a registered trademark. All intellectual property rights in and to the game are owned in the U.S.A and Canada by Hasbro Inc., and throughout the rest of the world by J.W. Spear & Sons Limited of Maidenhead, Berkshire, England, a subsidiary of Mattel Inc. Mattel and Spear are not affiliated with Hasbro. | |
| 1. Definition 2. Synonyms 3. Crosswords 4. Usage: Modern | 5. Usage: Commercial 6. Images: Slideshow 7. Images: Photo Album 8. Quotations: Familiar | 9. Quotations: Fiction 10. Quotations: Non-fiction 11. Usage Frequency 12. Names: Frequency | 13. Names: Derived from 14. Cities 15. Expressions 16. Expressions: Internet | 17. Translations: Modern 18. Translations: Ancient 19. Bible Trace 20. Abbreviations | 21. Acronyms 22. Derivations 23. Rhymes 24. Anagrams | 25. Bibliography |
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