英文谜语同中国谜语一样有着极其悠久的历史，其中最为有名的大概是斯芬克司之“谜”了。“斯芬克司”一词源自希腊语Sphinx，是希腊神话中一个可怕的怪物，它长着女人的头、狮子的身躯，身上还有两只翅膀。传说中，狮身人面的女怪斯芬克司生性残酷无比，常常守在大路口，让过往的行人猜一个谜，猜错了就要被吃掉。有一次，一位国王的儿子被斯芬克司吃掉了，国王一怒之下，发出悬赏：“谁能把它制服，就给他王位。”青年俄狄浦斯(Oedipus)应召前去，很快就道破谜底，斯芬克司便自杀了。这个世界著名的谜语是：What goes on four feet, on two feet, and three, but the more feet it goes on, the weaker it will be.其谜底是Man. Because he crawls first, then walks on two feet, uses a cane when old.因为人在婴儿时用四肢在地上爬行，成人后两腿行走，年老后拄拐杖走路，所以谜底是“人”。这个谜语还可以这样说：What goes on four legs at dawn, two at noon, and three at dusk? 该谜语采用了描写其特征的方法，英语中这种谜语被称为事物谜，也叫做描述性谜语(descriptive riddles)。事物谜的谜面通常是用比喻、暗示或其他方法来描绘所猜谜底的特征，和汉语中物谜的谜面构成及猜测方法基本相同。
2)What starts with T，ends with T and full of T？谜底是“A teapot”。teapot(茶壶)一词以字母T开头和结尾，而茶壶里装的自然是茶(tea)，所以是full of T。
3)The longest word in the world.谜底是“smiles”。这个单词的首字母和尾字母之间是单词“mile”(英里)，可以理解为首尾间有一英里长，自然就是世界上最长的单词了。猜这个字谜时，千万不要去翻词典去找一个字母最多的单词。
2)What is the cheapest way to see the world？
谜底是“Buy an atlas”。买一张地图(buy an atlas)就可以见到整个世界(see the world)了。而其实see the world作为一个固定词组时的意思是“见多识广”。
有些貌似简单，谜底却耐人寻味。如：
What goes up and never goes down？谜底是“Age”。年龄是永远向上增长，不可能下降的。还有一些则语出惊人，出人意料，细细品味倒也幽默风趣，让人哑然失笑。
例如：
Why should you never marry a tennis player？谜底是“Because love means nothing to them”。love的通用义是“爱情”，在网球比赛中则表示“零分”。
英文智力谜语中有一类比较难猜，这类谜语是通过篡改英语谚语、成语或名句而形成的，要猜出这些谜语就必须对这些谚语、成语了如指掌，否则，就是绞尽脑汁也未必能猜中。略举例说明一下：
1)Why shouldn't you cry if a cow slips on the ice?
谜底是“Because it's no use crying over spilt milk.”
英语中成语“覆水难收”是这样表达的：“It's no use crying over spilt milk.”所以谜底就用成语作一戏言，因为母牛摔在地上，它身上的牛奶也洒了。
2)What's a sculptor's motto?
谜底是“All work and no clay makes Jack a dull boy.”
雕塑师(sculptor)的格言All work and no clay makes Jack a dull boy.(只工作没有土，聪明孩子也变傻。)是模仿谚语All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.(只工作不玩耍，聪明孩子也变傻。)杜撰而来。
英语100题
简单题（少儿英语谜语）
一、抢答题
1. It’s in our classroom. We can write on it. __________
2. It’s the tallest animal in the zoo.__________
3. What kind of fruit is purple？__________
4. It’s afraid of cats. It likes eating all kinds of food._______ ___
5. You use it to brush your teeth. __________
6. What kind of food is triangle？__________
7. It is a room. We sleep in it.__________
二、速答题
1. You can put your money and your cards in it. What is it？
It’s a _______ or a _______ .
2. If you want to know the time, you can use it. What is it？
It’s a_______ or a _______ .
3. If you want to have a cup of tea, you may use it. What is it？
It’s a _______.
4. What do people usually eat at the Dragon Boat Festival？
They’re _______ _______ .
5. We can put it on the birthday cake. What is it？
It’s a _______ .
三.小学生英语谜语及最佳答案
1.a cat,eyes like a cat,a tail like a cat ,but isn't a cat?
2.what is in the center of the water?
3.Two little brothers,
One lives on one side,
The other on the other side,
They hear what you say,
But they do not see each other.
4.What can hear you without ears and can answer you without a mouth?
