Here’s a short riddle that can make you think twice: What has a tongue but never tastes anything?
Most people hear the word “tongue” and immediately picture the part of our mouth that helps us taste food and speak. The clever answer depends on another meaning of the same word.
A little clue before the answer
Think about everyday objects with parts named after parts of the human body. A chair has legs. A needle has an eye. And something you probably wear has a tongue.
If you’ve ever tied a pair of laces, you’ve probably touched the answer many times without paying it much attention.
The answer: a shoe
A shoe has a tongue but cannot taste anything. The tongue is the flexible strip of material that sits under the laces on top of your foot. It helps protect the foot from pressure and makes a shoe more comfortable.
Because it’s only a part of an object, it has no sense of taste at all. That’s why the answer fits both halves of the question.
Why this classic riddle works
The trick is in taking a familiar word literally at first and then realizing that it can describe something else. Once you think about a shoe, the riddle seems obvious. Before that, it can send your mind in every direction.
Did you solve it without a clue? Try asking someone the question at dinner and see how long it takes them to say “shoe.”
