{"id":119216,"date":"2023-07-03T12:48:46","date_gmt":"2023-07-03T16:48:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/learn\/riddles-in-french-language\/"},"modified":"2025-01-27T04:39:55","modified_gmt":"2025-01-27T09:39:55","slug":"riddles-in-french-language","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/french\/riddles-in-french-language\/","title":{"rendered":"10 Riddles in French (With Translations and Answers)"},"content":{"rendered":"

Riddles in the French language can help you in a myriad of ways. Simply put, practicing French using riddles is an excellent way to improve your language\u00a0skills<\/a> and prepare for a trip abroad.<\/p>\n

In this guide, I’ll give you some examples of interesting French riddles along with their answers and translations.\u00a0<\/p>\n

[fluentu-toc]<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

“Who Am I?” Riddles<\/h2>\n

The following riddles are styled as “Who am I?” riddles made famous by J.R.R. Tolkien’s battle of wits between Bilbo Baggins and Gollum in “The Hobbit” chapter entitled “Riddles in the Dark.”<\/a><\/p>\n

Riddle 1<\/h3>\n

Toujours le premier, jamais le dernier,
\nRien sans lui n’est jamais fini
\nCar rien ne peut commencer sans lui.
\nQui est-il?<\/em><\/p>\n

Always the first, never the last,
\nNothing can finish without it
\nBecause nothing can start without it.
\nWhat is it?<\/p>\n

Answer 1<\/strong><\/p>\n

Le d\u00e9but <\/em>(the beginning)<\/p>\n

Riddle 2<\/h3>\n

J’ai un chapeau mais pas de t\u00eate.
\nJ’ai un pied mais pas de jambe.
\nQui suis-je?<\/em><\/p>\n

I have a cap but no head.
\nI have a foot but no leg.
\nWho am I?<\/p>\n

You’ll need to think about the French words<\/a> for this one, as their English equivalents don’t really match up.<\/p>\n

Answer 2<\/strong><\/p>\n

Un champignon <\/em>(a mushroom)<\/p>\n

Here, the answer makes sense only in French, as\u00a0pied\u00a0<\/em>(foot) can also be used to refer to the stalk of a mushroom.<\/p>\n

Riddle 3<\/h3>\n

On en jette l’ext\u00e9rieur et on en cuit l’int\u00e9rieur.
\nEnsuite, on mange l’ext\u00e9rieur et on jette l’int\u00e9rieur.
\nDe quoi s’agit-il?<\/em><\/p>\n

You throw away the outside and cook the inside.
\nThen, you eat the outside and throw away the inside.
\nOf what am I speaking?<\/p>\n

Answer 3<\/strong><\/p>\n

Un \u00e9pi de ma\u00efs <\/em>(a corncob)<\/p>\n

Riddle 4<\/h3>\n

Je suis ce que je suis.
\nMais je ne suis pas ce que je suis.
\nCar si j’\u00e9tais ce que je suis,
\nJe ne serais pas ce que je suis.
\nQue suis-je?<\/em><\/p>\n

I am what I am.
\nBut I am not what I follow.
\nBecause if I were what I follow,
\nI would not be what I am.
\nWhat am I?<\/p>\n

Answer 4<\/strong><\/p>\n

Un berger <\/em>(a shepherd)<\/p>\n

The key to understanding this riddle is in the word\u00a0suis<\/em>, which can be either the first-person conjugated form<\/a> of\u00a0\u00eatre\u00a0<\/em>(to be) or\u00a0suivre\u00a0<\/em>(to follow).<\/p>\n

At first glance, one believes the riddle to simply use\u00a0je suis\u00a0<\/em>(I am) repeatedly, but the key is figuring out that sometimes\u00a0je suis<\/em> means “I am” and sometimes it means “I follow.”<\/p>\n

Enigmas<\/h2>\n

The next few puzzles are enigmas that would stump even Batman’s nemesis, Nygma<\/a>!<\/p>\n

Riddle 5<\/h3>\n

Qu’est-ce qui a des ailes et ne vole pas?<\/em><\/p>\n

What has wings but doesn’t fly?<\/p>\n

This is another one where only the French version will help you.<\/p>\n

Answer 5<\/strong><\/p>\n

Un moulin <\/em>(a windmill)<\/p>\n

While in English, we refer to vanes, sails or blades on a windmill, in French, they use\u00a0ailes\u00a0<\/em>(wings).<\/p>\n

Riddle 6<\/h3>\n

Qu’est-ce qu’un hippopotame qui fait du camping?<\/em><\/p>\n

What is a hippopotamus who camps?<\/p>\n

Answer 6<\/strong><\/p>\n

Un hippocampe <\/em>(a hippocampus)<\/p>\n

Riddle 7<\/h3>\n

Qu’est-ce qui s\u00e9pare l’eau de l’air?<\/em><\/p>\n

What separates water from air?<\/p>\n

Hint:<\/strong> focus exclusively on the French version, listening<\/a> rather than reading<\/strong>!<\/p>\n

Answer 7<\/strong><\/p>\n

Le papier toilette <\/em>(toilet paper)<\/p>\n

This one requires an explanation, as you’ll only understand it using French.<\/p>\n

In the riddle, l’eau<\/em> (water) and\u00a0l’air\u00a0<\/em>(air) are actually meant to be thought of by their sounds, which makes them the letters O and R, respectively. The letters between O and R are of course P and Q. And in French, PQ is sometimes how one refers to\u00a0papier toilette\u00a0<\/em>(toilet paper).<\/p>\n

It’s\u00a0truly necessary to think in French when solving French riddles<\/strong>!<\/p>\n

Mysterious Scenario Riddles<\/h2>\n

The last several riddles are set up as mysterious scenarios that only the next Sherlock Holmes can solve!<\/p>\n

Riddle 8<\/h3>\n

Avant-hier, Catherine avait 17 ans.
\nL’ann\u00e9e prochaine, elle aura 20 ans.
\nComment est-ce possible?<\/em><\/p>\n

The day before yesterday, Catherine was 17-years-old.
\nNext year, she will be 20-years-old.
\nHow is this possible?<\/p>\n

Answer 8<\/strong><\/p>\n

It’s possible because her\u00a0birthday is December 31<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Yesterday was December 31. She turned 18-years-old. This year, she will turn 19-years-old and next year, she will turn 20-years-old.<\/p>\n

Riddle 9<\/h3>\n

J’ai quelque chose dans ma poche mais ma poche est vide.
\nQu’est-ce que c’est?<\/em><\/p>\n

I have something in my pocket but my pocket is empty.
\nWhat is it?<\/p>\n

Answer 9<\/strong><\/p>\n

Un trou <\/em>(a hole)<\/p>\n

Riddle 10<\/h3>\n

Il y a une pr\u00eatresse de la tribu. Elle r\u00e9pond toujours clairement par oui ou non. Quelle question pourriez-vous poser pour qu’elle se trompe?<\/em><\/p>\n

There’s a tribe priestess. She always responds with either a “yes” or a “no.” What question can you ask her to cause her to make a mistake?<\/p>\n

Answer 10<\/strong><\/p>\n

Est-ce que le prochain mot que tu vas dire “non?”<\/em><\/p>\n

Will the next word that you say be “no?”<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Now that you’ve put your deductive skills to the test, it’s time to keep improving your French and solving your way all the way to fluency!<\/a><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

And One More Thing...<\/h2>\r\n

\r\n\tIf you like learning French at your own pace and from the comfort of your device, I have to tell you about FluentU<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\r\n

\r\nFluentU makes it easier (and way more fun) to learn French by making real content like movies and series accessible to learners. You can check out FluentU's curated video library, or bring our learning tools directly to Netflix or YouTube<\/strong> with the FluentU Chrome extension. \r\n<\/p>\r\n

\r\n\"learn-french-with-videos\"<\/a><\/p>\r\n

\r\nOne of the features I find most helpful is the interactive captions<\/strong>\u2014you can tap on any word to see its meaning, an image, pronunciation, and other examples from different contexts. It\u2019s a great way to pick up French vocab without having to pause and look things up separately.\r\n<\/p>

\r\n\"learn-french-with-movies\"<\/a><\/p>\r\n

\r\nFluentU also helps reinforce what you\u2019ve learned<\/strong> with personalized quizzes. You can swipe through extra examples and complete engaging exercises that adapt to your progress. You'll get extra practice with the words you find more challenging and even be reminded you when it\u2019s time to review!\r\n<\/p>

\r\n\"practice-french-with-adaptive-quizzes\"<\/a><\/p>\r\n

\r\nYou can use FluentU on your computer, tablet, or phone with our app for Apple or Android devices. Click here to take advantage of our current sale! (Expires at the end of this month.)<\/a>\r\n<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Riddles in the French language can help you in a myriad of ways. Simply put, practicing French using riddles is an excellent way to improve your language\u00a0skills and prepare for…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":440,"featured_media":248559,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"slim_seo":{"title":"10 Riddles in French (With Translations and Answers) | FluentU French Blog","description":"If you want a challenge, try solving a French riddle! Read this guide to find out some of the best head-scratching riddles that will help you really test your French skills. You'll find out about multiple different riddle styles in French, along with their English translations and solutions."},"footnotes":""},"categories":[570,571],"tags":[],"coauthors":[172],"class_list":["post-119216","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-french","category-french-vocabulary"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/119216","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/440"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=119216"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/119216\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":241528,"href":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/119216\/revisions\/241528"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/248559"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=119216"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=119216"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=119216"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=119216"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}