Holidays bring people together, which makes them a perfect time to swap riddles and laughs. We’ve gathered a big collection of Thanksgiving riddles to entertain guests, ease kitchen stress, and steer conversation away from touchy topics. Riddles help break the ice and create a fun, friendly vibe. You’ll find a section just for kids, a set for adults, and a tougher batch for true puzzle fans. Whatever your level, there’s a Thanksgiving riddle here for you.
Table of Contents
Thanksgiving Riddles for Kids
Kids love to entertain and be entertained with riddles. Remind them to read slowly and think before answering – the first idea isn’t always right. These kid-friendly riddles are easy to remember and perfect to share.
- What smells the best during Thanksgiving dinner?
- If roses are red, violets are blue, what is stuffed, brown and blue?
- Which side of the turkey has more feathers?
- If a tur-key has a key, and a don-key also has a key, what would you expect a monkey to have?
- When the Pilgrims walked off their boat into the New World, on what did they stand?
- What has feathers, is the star of a November feast, and goes up and down?
- When does Christmas come before Thanksgiving?
- At Thanksgiving dinner, which hand should you butter your roll with?
- What is the difference between a chicken and a turkey?
- What do you call a running turkey?
- What always comes at the end of Thanksgiving?
- If you feel scared on Halloween and jolly on Christmas, how do you feel on Thanksgiving?
- What is the favorite sport of pumpkins and gourds?
- What do you get when you cross a turkey and a monkey?
- What is red and has feathers all over?
- Why did the chewing gum cross the road?
- Why did the turkey cross the road twice?
- Why do turkeys eat so little?
- What part of the turkey does a drummer love the most?
- What sound does a limping turkey make?
- Where do you find a turkey with no legs?
- What happened when the turkey got into a fight?
- I am a 12-letter word, 2 compound words, and people celebrate me in the fall. What am I?
- What animal has the worst eating habits?
- What can never be eaten at Thanksgiving dinner?
- How can you tell which part of the turkey is the left side?
- What key won’t open any door?
- What do you call a turkey on the day after Thanksgiving?
- Can a turkey jump higher than the Empire State Building?
- What sails around the table but never goes to sea?
- What snack is always late to dinner?
- What kind of music do turkeys like?
- What sound does a turkey’s phone make?
- What do you get when you put a turkey in a football jersey?
- Why did the mashed potatoes blush?
Thanksgiving Riddles for Adults
Surprise your guests with Thanksgiving riddles that nod to cooking, music, and seasonal traditions. Share them at your Thanksgiving get-together for a few grown-up giggles.
- How can a turkey end up with three legs even though it has only two?
- What has feathers, a bowed head, and kneels?
- Why did the turkey get arrested and put in jail?
- Where do turkeys go to dance?
- I’m often at Thanksgiving dinner. I have ears, but I cannot hear. My outside is kept; my inside gets tossed. What am I?
- I can be hot or cold, made with fruit, vegetables, or meat, but either way I’m a treat on the table. What am I?
- If April showers bring May flowers, what do Mayflowers bring?
- If it took 3 cooks 4 hours to roast a turkey, how long would it take 4 cooks to roast the same turkey?
- If the turkey says “Gobble, gobble” and a peach says “Cobbler, cobbler,” what would a computer say?
- Why do some Pilgrim hats need a tailor?
- What do you get when a turkey lays an egg on top of a barn?
- What do you call it when it rains turkeys?
- What kind of music did the Pilgrims enjoy at the feast?
- Why did they let the turkey join the band?
- What’s the best thing to put into a pumpkin pie?
- Why do turkeys “gobble, gobble”?
- Why did the cranberries turn red?
- What do grateful, thankful, wonderful, and joyful all have in common?
- Can a turkey fly higher than an ostrich?
- What’s a turkey’s favorite Thanksgiving food?
- What’s the best dance to do on Thanksgiving?
- Why didn’t the turkey finish dessert?
- Why did Johnny get bad grades after Thanksgiving?
- What is a baby turkey called?
- What happens when cranberries get overwhelmed?
- What leftovers get taller the day after Thanksgiving?
- Why did the gravy apply for a raise?
- What travels from plate to plate but never eats?
- What do you call a debate about mashed potatoes?
Hard Thanksgiving Riddles
Ready for a challenge? Try these trickier riddles. The answers often surprise even seasoned solvers. Stump your family after you’ve cracked them yourself.
- What’s the favorite food of mathematicians for Thanksgiving?
- What is hard, oddly-shaped, and brings good fortune on Thanksgiving?
- What would you get if you crossed a turkey with a ghost?
- Why was the Thanksgiving soup so expensive?
- What did the mother turkey say to her disobedient children?
- What do you wear to Thanksgiving dinner?
- Why didn’t the cook season the turkey?
- If the Pilgrims were alive today, what would they be most famous for?
- What do you get when you divide the circumference of your jack-o’-lantern by its diameter?
- Why did the farmer run a steamroller over his potato field on Thanksgiving Day?
- Why did the turkey cross the road?
- What is a turkey’s favorite dessert?
- What did the stock clerk say when asked, “Do these turkeys get any bigger?”
- What do you get when you cross a turkey with a centipede?
- What’s the difference between a pirate and a cranberry farmer?
- Why did the scarecrow win a prize?
- If you call a big turkey a gobbler, what do you call a small one?
- Why do turkeys lay eggs?
- What do you get when you cross a turkey with a banjo?
- What would you call a pet squash?
- Why did the Pilgrims want to sail in the spring?
- What did the turkey say before it was roasted?
- What did the turkey say to the hunter on Thanksgiving Day?
- What’s the best song to play while cooking a turkey?
- What kind of weather does a turkey like?
- Why didn’t the baker want to make the rolls?
- What do you call the age of a Pilgrim?
- What do you get if you cross a turkey with a bell?
- What happened to the turkey whose feathers pointed the wrong way?
- What did the salad say to the butter that kept making jokes?
- What describes both political talk and filling your plate?
- What should you say when your family begs you to stop Thanksgiving jokes?
- Two fathers and two sons sit down to Thanksgiving. They eat exactly three drumsticks and everyone gets one. How?
- I float above crowds without wings, and I’m tethered to cheers on TV each morning. What am I?
- I arrive before the feast, I’m split with a snap, and I grant silent wishes. What am I?
- What travels the farthest at Thanksgiving without taking a step?
- What comes twice in November and once in December, but never in May?
- I’m passed around hot, started by a ladle, and known to keep the peace at dinner. What am I?
We hope this collection of Thanksgiving riddles brings smiles and easy conversation to your holiday. Use them to kick off a meal, fill a car ride, or keep the kitchen crew laughing while the timer ticks. Happy riddle-solving, and happy Thanksgiving!
Susan majored in English with a double minor in Humanities and Business at Arizona State University and earned a Master’s degree in Educational Administration from Liberty University. She taught grades four through twelve in both public and private schools. Subjects included English, U.S. and world history and geography, math, earth and physical science, Bible, information technologies, and creative writing.
Susan has been freelance writing for over ten years, during which time she has written and edited books, newspaper articles, biographies, book reviews, guidelines, neighborhood descriptions for realtors, Power Point presentations, resumes, and numerous other projects.
