62 Lateral-Thinking Puzzles (With Answers)

A family had a chicken coop for their one dozen, egg producing hens. Late one night, a terrible storm came through their area and killed all but eight chickens. How many chickens did the family have in the next morning?

A man raced his car through the streets with his wife as his only passenger. When they stopped, the husband got out of the car. When he returned, his found his wife without any signs of life and a stranger in the car. What had happened? 

A woman opened a door, screamed, and then was found without any signs of life a few minutes later. No gunshots were heard in the area. What happened to her?

A woman hears her name and is then taken away by two men. Later, the woman dies while under the care of many. What happened to this poor woman?

A woman grabbed a guy’s ring, pulled on it, and dropped it, thereby saving his life. What happened?

Fiona entered a restaurant where a crowd of people was enjoying a meal. When the people saw Fiona they dropped their forks and fled the restaurant. What happened?

A man dives for oysters for a living. One day, an angry and extremely dangerous shark confronts the man. He has no way to defend himself, but he isn’t worried.

A man buys two exactly identical drinks at a bar and gives one to his friend. The friend passes away from poison found in his drink, but the man who bought the drinks lives without consuming any poison at all despite finishing his drink.

A woman has indisputable proof in court that her husband was murdered by her sister. The judge declares, “This is the strangest case I’ve ever seen. Though it’s a clear case, this woman cannot be punished.” How can this be?

Betty has been missing for more than 50 years. When a person finds her, he/she immediately knows that they’ve found Betty after going missing all those years ago. How does he/she know this?

Hans and Fritz are German spies during World War II. They try to enter America, posing as returning tourists. Hans is immediately arrested. What happened to give him away?

Little Billy was four years old and both his parents had passed away. His guardian put him on a train to send him to a new home in the country. Billy could neither read nor write nor remember the address, so a large label on a string was secured around his neck clearly indicating Billy's name and destination. However, despite the best efforts and kindness of the railway staff, Billy never arrived at his new home. Why?

A man pushes his car until he reaches a hotel. When he arrives, he realizes he’s bankrupt. What happened?

Donald's Trucking Company has been delivering goods to and from local businesses for years. Donald's business is steady and his trucks drive the same routes and roads every day without any trouble. This year, Donald decided to start delivering and receiving goods on Christmas Day as a way to earn additional money. When Christmas Day finally came, Donald sent a few drivers out to do business with those companies that chose to remain open. Later that day Donald received a call that one of his delivery drivers had struck a bridge and severally damaged the truck. How could this happen if the driver's have always used the same route without any previous problems?

A body is discovered in a park in New York in the middle of summer. It has a fractured skull and many other broken bones, but the cause of perishing was hypothermia. What happened?

The music stops and a woman passes away. What’s going on?

One day a woman received a parcel in the mail. She found a carefully packed human arm inside. She examined it, repacked it, and sent it on to another woman. The second woman also carefully examined the arm and then took it to the woods and buried it. Why did they both do these things?

A woman had a pet goldfish which she loved very dearly. One day she noticed that it was swimming feebly in its bowl and it looked very unwell. She rushed to the vet with her prized pet and he told her to come back in an hour. When she returned she found the goldfish swimming strongly and looking healthy again. How had the vet managed this?

One sunny day, you’re cruising on your boat in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. In the middle of the ocean, you spot a yacht and see several corpses floating in the water nearby. What happened?

A man is sitting in a dark room having a great time. Suddenly, he stops breathing and can’t speak. In a matter of moments, his breathing and ability to speak come back to him. What happened?