RIDDLES Synonyms: 69 Similar and Opposite Words

riddles 1 of 2

noun

plural of riddle

as in mysteries

something hard to understand or explain his motives for starting an argument with the coach were a complete riddle

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riddles

2 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of riddle

as in drills

to make a hole or series of holes in several signs along the highway were riddled by buckshot

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in suffuses

to spread throughout the newspaper exposé revealed a gaming commission that is riddled with corruption

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of riddles

Noun

The machine’s repertoire included answers to 12 riddles, passages from books, and laughing, crying and kissing sounds, as well as arias sung in both male and female voices—all feats that Edison’s phonograph would one day be able to accomplish by recording and playing back the human voice. —

Ron Cowen, Scientific American, 3 June 2026 The New Zealand singer-songwriter wanders around inside her psychedelic folk arrangements, singing in private riddles and changing the tone of her voice from one song (or even one verse) to the next, seemingly oblivious or indifferent to your presence. —

Jayson Greene, Pitchfork, 8 May 2026 How imagination works, how influence unfolds, how history rhymes — these remain riddles. —

New York Times, 28 Apr. 2026 For now, Anteotokounmpo, 31, remains coy, his words wrapped in riddles and his intentions couched in caveats, even as ESPN continues to report that a trade (somewhere) is viewed as inevitable and even as the two-time MVP insists that a trade is not his decision. —

Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 20 Apr. 2026 LeetCode is a training platform for the kind of algorithmic riddles that usually crop up in interviews for big tech companies. —

Sam Kriss, Harpers Magazine, 24 Feb. 2026 All types of lanterns are lighted throughout the streets, and poems and riddles are often written for entertainment. —

Jennifer Borresen, USA Today, 15 Feb. 2026 The resulting footage was only discovered by the Cinémathèque in 2023; now edited together into a cohesive work, this invaluable and sui generis artifact finds one master filmmaker engaging with and taking in thewisdom, riddles, and pronouncements of another. —

Matthew Carey, Deadline, 20 Jan. 2026 Neighbors put their own spin on the game, dressing up Frank in accessories, and posting riddles and clues to their local Facebook group to give hints on Frank's whereabouts. —

CBS News, 21 Dec. 2025

Verb

Any trip to the dark night skies of our Southern California deserts reveals a vista full of wonder and mystery — riddles that astrophysicists like myself spend our days unraveling. —

Steven R. Furlanetto, Twin Cities, 17 Aug. 2025

Recent Examples of Synonyms for riddles

Noun

New York — One of the biggest mysteries of the global economy is why the oil market has remained so calm during one of the greatest supply shocks in history.

— Matt Egan, CNN Money, 9 June 2026
Solving the mysteries of Lewis’s art hasn’t been easy.

— Zachary Fine, New Yorker, 8 June 2026