Rebus Puzzles: 30 Word Picture Puzzles with Answers on Riddlepedia
Funny & Tricky

Rebus Puzzles: 30 Word Picture Puzzles with Answers

30 riddles · tap Hint or Answer to reveal

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A rebus puzzle hides a phrase in the way words are written. Where a word sits, how big it is, how many times it appears or whether it’s spelled backward are all part of the clue. STAND written on top of the letter I doesn’t say “stand I.” It says “I understand,” because the I is under STAND.

These 30 rebus puzzles are written out in plain text, with the position of each word described in words, so you can read them aloud or copy them onto a whiteboard. The easy round uses one simple trick per puzzle, the medium round hides words inside other words, and the tricky round needs you to read the whole picture. Every answer is a well-known phrase or name.

Easy Rebus Puzzles

CYCLE CYCLE CYCLE

Hint
Count the cycles. Little kids ride one of these.
Answer
Tricycle. Three cycles make a “tri-cycle.”

The word STAND is written on top of the letter I.

Hint
Where is the I, compared to STAND?
Answer
I understand. The I is under STAND.

The word MIND is written on top of the word MATTER.

Hint
It’s a saying about willpower beating a problem.
Answer
Mind over matter

The word MAN is written on top of the word BOARD.

Hint
Someone on a ship would shout this.
Answer
Man overboard

The word DEAL is written in giant capital letters that fill the whole page.

Hint
Someone says this when they think something isn’t important.
Answer
Big deal

The word WORLD is written in teeny, tiny letters.

Hint
People say it when they bump into a friend far from home.
Answer
It’s a small world.

The word SECRET is written at the very top of the page, with nothing above it.

Hint
Spies keep files marked like this.
Answer
Top secret

Two straight lines run across the page, and the word READING is written in the space between them.

Hint
It means noticing what someone meant but didn’t say.
Answer
Reading between the lines

ECNALG

Hint
Read it from right to left.
Answer
A backward glance. It’s GLANCE spelled backward.

COF FEE

Hint
Something has happened to the word in the middle.
Answer
Coffee break. The word COFFEE has a break in it.

Medium Rebus Puzzles

HAHANDND

Hint
Look for a whole word sitting inside a second copy of the same word.
Answer
Hand in hand. HAND sits inside HA-ND.

HOROBOD

Hint
Find the word hiding in the middle. Together they name a famous outlaw.
Answer
Robin Hood. It’s ROB in HO-OD.

MOMANON

Hint
Find the person hiding in the middle, then look at what’s wrapped around him.
Answer
The man in the moon. It’s MAN in MO-ON.

BJACKOX

Hint
A boy’s name is hiding inside a container.
Answer
Jack-in-the-box. It’s JACK in B-OX.

BAN ANA

Hint
A fruit has been cut in two. Think of an ice cream treat.
Answer
Banana split

TIME TIME

Hint
One comes right behind the other.
Answer
Time after time

HISTORY HISTORY

Hint
The same thing is happening again.
Answer
History repeats itself.

P A I N S, with every letter a little bigger than the one before it.

Hint
Kids sometimes feel these in their legs as they get taller.
Answer
Growing pains

The word EGGS is written on top of the word EASY.

Hint
It’s a way to order breakfast at a diner.
Answer
Eggs over easy

DICE DICE

Hint
How many dice are there? Say it out loud, then think of a perfect place.
Answer
Paradise. Two dice are a “pair of dice.”

Tricky Rebus Puzzles

The word STOOD is written on top of the letters MIS.

Hint
Read the bottom part first, then say where it is.
Answer
Misunderstood. MIS is under STOOD.

MILL1ON

Hint
One letter in this big number word has been swapped for a digit.
Answer
One in a million. There’s a 1 in MILLION.

X Q Q Q ME

Hint
Say the letters out loud, and count the Qs.
Answer
Excuse me. “X-Q-Qs-me” sounds like “excuse me.”

GET IT GET IT GET IT GET IT

Hint
Count how many times you see GET IT.
Answer
Forget it. It’s “four get it.”

The word TRAVEL is written on top of a row of letters: C C C C C C C.

Hint
Say the letter on the bottom row as a plural. Where is TRAVEL?
Answer
Travel overseas. TRAVEL is over the C’s (seas).

The word ARREST is written on top of the word YOU’RE.

Hint
A police officer might say this.
Answer
You’re under arrest.

HE’S HIMSELF, with the two words side by side.

Hint
It describes someone who is very upset or excited.
Answer
He’s beside himself.

The word WEAR is written on top of the word LONG.

Hint
Something warm you put on under your clothes on a cold day.
Answer
Long underwear. LONG is under WEAR.

The word WEATHER is written on top of the word I’M.

Hint
Someone who has a cold might say this.
Answer
I’m under the weather.

A zero (0) is written on top of three short words: M.D., B.A., PH.D.

Hint
Those letters are things you earn at a university. Where are they, compared to the 0?
Answer
Three degrees below zero. M.D., B.A. and Ph.D. are three degrees, written below the 0.

How to Play Rebus Puzzles

  • Whiteboard race: draw one puzzle on the board exactly as described (stack the words, shrink them or space them out). The first team to shout the phrase wins a point. Drawing them yourself makes the trick much easier to see.
  • Read-aloud round: for a car trip or the dinner table, read the descriptions as written, with no drawing. It’s harder, because players have to picture the page in their heads.
  • Make your own: pick a saying with a position word in it (over, under, in, between, after, backward) and try to draw it. “Head over heels” and “split second” are good ones to start with.
  • Classroom warm-up: rebus puzzles are a fun way to practice prepositions like over, under, between and below. Ask students to explain which word gives the puzzle away.

Looking for more word puzzles? Try our emoji riddles, these spelling riddles or our riddles about words.