This classic brain teaser is short and memorable: What goes up but never comes down?
The answer: Your age
As time passes, your age increases. You can become a year older, but you can’t make your chronological age go backward. That’s why your age is the usual answer to the riddle.
Why the clue is tricky
The words “goes up” might make you picture something rising into the air, such as a balloon, smoke, or a kite. But those things can eventually come down. The clever part of the riddle is that “up” doesn’t have to describe physical movement. It can also describe a number increasing.
Once you think in terms of growing older rather than moving upward, the answer becomes much easier.
Share the riddle
Try asking someone without hints and see what they imagine first. This question is popular because its answer is familiar to everyone, even though the wording may send your mind in the wrong direction.
Did you get “your age” immediately?
