History of riddles - BASIC

Origin and Meaning of the Riddle

The word ‘riddle’ describes describe describing( describes, describe, describing ) a sentence or question, that needs need needing( needs, need, needing ) a concrete answer or presents present presenting( presents, present, presenting ) a puzzle to be deciphered. There are is isn't aren't( are, is, isn't, aren't ) two kinds of riddles. First there is are am( is, are, am ) the enigma – a metaphorically expressed riddle – and second there is are isn't( is, are, isn't ) a conundrum – a very tricky problem usually including a pun in its question or answer. A pun is are am( is, are, am ) a form of word play using the different possible meanings of a word or the similarities in the pronunciation. For example, a horse is does can( is, does, can ) a very stable animal.

The word ‘riddle’ has is have does( has, is, have, does ) the same origin as the word ‘read’. It is an a the( an, a, the ) Old English word that means interpret or guess. The oldest preserved riddle is from at in on( from, at, in, on ) ancient Mesopotamia. Another Sumerian riddle asks to name a certain institution, maybe you can are have( can, are, have ) guess:

“There is a house. One enters it blind and comes out seeing. What is it?”

Ancient and medieval literature is full of riddles. They were where( were, where ) used to bring suspense to the text and to pass on cultural tradition. One example would be the double meanings in the a an( the, a, an ) words. In that sense, riddles also had an educational purpose, because they the a( they, the, a ) people had to understand the many meanings a single word can is do( can, is, do ) have in any situation.

Types of Riddles

The riddle survived the test of time and is still a popular medium for spending free time money( time, money ) or improving mental abilities. Nowadays there are have( there are, have ) many kinds of word- or letter-based riddles next near( next, near ) to the poetic ones. Here's a short collection:

- Riddles as Poems or Prose: these this( these, this ) riddles are small texts set in poetry or prose.

- Anagrams are a small kind of riddle. They It( They, It ) usually consist of one word, but can also be extended to sentences. Their They( Their, They ) letters can be reordered to form another word or sentence.

- Crosswords: a very many( very, many ) young type of riddle is the crossword, where questions and answers are arranged in grids. The answer words cross each other, which is how it got its his( its, his ) name. The first modern crossword puzzle was produced by Arthur Wynne in the New York World in on( in, on ) 1913.

Of course there are many very( many, very ) other types of riddles nowadays.