Think Laterally!

Here are some of the lateral-thinking puzzles that I've come across over the years. A warning, though: a lot of lateral-thinking puzzles are typically "how did they die?" types of questions. I've tried to include a number of non-death-related questions as well. And I've tried to sort them roughly by difficulty.

Enjoy!

The Barman
A man walks into a bar and asks the barman for a glass of water. The barman pulls out a gun and points it at the man. The man says 'Thank you' and walks out.

The Elevator
A man lives on the twelfth floor of an apartment building. Every morning he takes the elevator down to the lobby and leaves the building. In the evening, he gets into the elevator, and, if there is someone else in the elevator -- or if it was raining that day -- he goes back to his floor directly. Otherwise, he goes to the tenth floor and walks up two flights of stairs to his apartment.

Two Sons
A woman had two sons who were born on the same hour of the same day of the same year. But they were not twins.

Antony and Cleopatra
Antony and Cleopatra are lying dead on the floor of a building in Egypt. Nearby is a broken bowl. There is no mark on either of their bodies and they were not poisoned.

The Package
A man is lying dead in a field. Next to him there is an unopened package.

The Car and the Hotel
A man pushes a car up to a hotel and pays the owner. A little while later, he continues pushing the car.

The Parcel
One day a man received a parcel in the post. Carefully packed inside was a human arm. He examined it, repacked it and then sent it on to another man. The second man also carefully examined the arm before taking it to the woods and burying it.

The Radio Program - 1
A man is driving his car. He turns on the radio, listens for five minutes, turns around, goes home, and shoots his wife.

A New Pair of Shoes
A woman buys a new pair of shoes, goes to work, and dies.

The Silent Phone Call
A man is lying awake in bed. He makes a phone call, says nothing, and goes to sleep.

The Spies
Hansel and Gretel are German spies during World War II. They try to enter America, posing as returning tourists. Hansel is immediately arrested.

The Birdwatcher
An avid birdwatcher sees an unexpected bird. Shortly afterwards, they're both dead.

Stuck? Email me for a hint. Please include the title of the puzzle.

Need more puzzles? Try these links:

Eluzions - Lateral Thinking Puzzles
Paul Sloane's Lateral Thinking Puzzles - he's an author of a number of lateral-thinking puzzle books.

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Page created: April 10, 2004.
Last updated: May 5, 2004.