Innocent English

King Tut

King Tut died 120 years after King Eros was born. Their combined ages when they died was 100 years. King Eros died in the year 40 B.C. In what year was King Tut born?

King Tut was born in 20 B.C. There were 120 years between the birth of King Eros and the death of King Tut, but since their ages amounted to only 100 years, there must have been 20 years when neither existed. This would be a period between the death of King Eros, 40 B.C., and the birth of King Tut, 20 B.C.

John and Dan

John had only $2, but he needed $3 for his cab fare home. He went to a pawn shop and pawned his $2 for $1.50. John then bumped into Dan and told him that he would sell him his $2 pawn ticket for $1.50. Dan agreed. Since John started out with $2, and he ended up with $3, who is out the extra dollar and why?

Dan is out the extra dollar. Before the pawn broker will return the $2 to the ticket holder, he will want the $1.50 which he advanced returned to him. Dan will give the pawn broker the ticket and the $1.50, and the pawn broker will then return the $2.

Magnifying Glass

Jim was examining an angle measuring 14 and 1/2 degrees, using his magnifying glass that magnifies everything two times. Under the glass, how large would that angle measure?

14 and 1/2 degrees.

The Signpost

Jack and Joe were on vacation and driving along a deserted country road from the town of Kaysville to the town of Lynnsville. They came to a multiple fork in the road. The sign post had been knocked down and they were faced with choosing one of five different
directions. Since they had left their map at the last gas station and there was no one around to ask, how could Jack and Joe find their way to Lynnsville?

They need to stand the signpost up so that the arm reading Kaysville points in the direction of Kaysville, the town they had just come from. With one arm pointing the correct way, the other arms will also point in the right directions.

Heart in its Head

It stands on one leg with its heart in its head.What is it?

Cabbage.

I Burn and Burn

Iron roof, glass walls, burns and burns and never falls.What am I?

A Lantern.

Squirrels and Ears

In the back yard there is a hollow stump that contains six ears of corn. If a healthy squirrel carries out only three ears each day, how many days will it take to empty the stump?

Six. Each day the squirrel will carry out the two ears on his head plus one ear of corn.

A Third of Ten

In olden days, the student of logic was given this problem:
If half of 5 were 3, what would one-third of 10 be?

It would be 4.

Choose to Die

In olden days you are a clever thief charged with treason against the king and sentenced to death. But the king decided to be a little lenient and lets you choose your own way to die. What way should you choose?

Choose to die of old age.

Ball Through the Water

In Jamaica, if you drop a steel ball weighing five pounds from a height of 45 inches, will it fall more rapidly through water at 20 degrees Fahrenheit or water at 40 degrees Fahrenheit. Or will it make no difference?

40 degrees Fahrenheit. At 20 degrees Fahrenheit the water would be ice.

Punished Sister

A woman proves in court that her husband was murdered by her sister, but the judge decides that the sister cannot be punished. Why?

The sisters are Siamese twins.

Growing in Reverse

In 1990, a person is 15 years old. In 1995 that same person is 10 years old.
How is this possible?

The years are in B.C.

Drowned Without Water?

A man is lying drowned in a dead forest, far from water. How did this happen?

A firefighting plane filled its tanks with water from a lake, sucking a scuba-diver in. He drowned while the plane was in flight and was dumped onto a burning forest with the water.

The Real Flower

In 1209, on a hot summer day there was a man who was ordered to be executed by king. The king was a nice king though, and he said that if the man could prove himself wise, he would let him go. The king filled a room with fake flowers, and only put in one real flower in the room. The king said the man had 20 seconds to find the real flower. The man said, “It’s very stuffy in here. Could you open a window?” The king opened a window, and the man immediately knew which was the real flower. How did he know?

When the King opened the window, a bee flew in and landed on the only real flower to gather pollen.

Across the Bridge

Imagine John, a party magician, is carrying three pieces of gold each piece weighing one kilogram. While taking a walk he comes to a bridge which has a sign posted saying the bridge could hold only a maximum of 80 kilograms. John weighs 78 kilograms and the gold weighs three kilograms. John reads the sign and still safely crossed the bridge with all the gold. How did he manage this?

John is a juggler. When he came to the bridge he juggled the gold, always keeping one piece in the air.

The Hourglasses

If you have two hourglasses — one four-minute timer and one seven-minute timer, how can you measure nine minutes?

Turn over both hourglasses at once.
When the four-minute hourglass runs out, turn it over.
When the seven-minute hourglass runs out, turn it over.
When the four-minute timer runs out this time (eight minutes have elapsed), the seven-minute hourglass has been running for one minute.
Now turn over the seven minute timer back over. When the timer runs out, nine minutes have elapsed.

One Is Not a Dime

If you have two coins which total 35 cents and one of the coins is not a dime, what are the two coins?

A quarter and a dime. One coin is not a dime, but the other one is.

Flickering Lights

A man runs along a hall with a piece of paper. When the lights flicker, he drops to his knees and begins to cry. Why?

He is running to deliver a pardon, and the flickering lights indicate the convict to be pardoned has just been electrocuted.

Handshaking

If seven people meet each other and each shakes hands only once with each of the others, how many handshakes will there have been?

Twenty one. Most people would think there were 42 handshakes.

Pipe, Carrot, and Sticks

A pipe, a carrot, and a couple sticks are lying together in a field. Why?

They’re what is left of a melted snowman.