Riddle: What do you call a snowman in the summer?
Answer: A puddle
Riddle Explanation + Meaning
Snowmen are made of snow, which is just frozen water.
When the weather gets warmer, especially in the summer, the snowman cannot stay frozen.
As the temperature rises, the snow melts and turns into water.
This water from the melted snow forms a puddle on the ground.
So, during the summer, what was once a snowman is now a puddle of water.
This transformation from a snowman to water explains why a snowman in the summer is called a puddle.
The riddle uses this change to create a humorous answer to what happens to a snowman when it gets warm.
Why the answer is a puddle
The riddle sounds like it wants a clever name, the way "what do you call" jokes usually do. Instead it asks you to think about what really happens. A snowman is made of snow, and snow melts when it gets warm. By summer, the only thing left of a snowman is water on the ground, which is a puddle. The answer is funny because it is so plainly true. Younger children sometimes feel sorry for the snowman, which can lead to a nice chat about seasons. Snow in winter, puddles in spring, and dry ground in summer all come from the same water, just at different temperatures. It is a small science lesson hiding inside a joke.
It catches people out because they search for a pun, like "a snow-woman" or "a summer-man." Some people answer "water," "slush," or "nothing," which all fit too. There is a small gentle sadness in the answer that younger children often find very funny. It also gives parents an easy way to talk about how ice and snow change into water.
Where this riddle comes from
This is a classic kids' joke riddle of unknown origin, usually told in winter. It belongs to the "what do you call" family, but with a twist: the answer is a plain fact rather than a pun. Riddles like this reward thinking about what happens next.
3 more riddles like this one
What goes up when the rain comes down?
Hint
Answer
What falls in winter but never gets hurt?
Hint
Answer
What grows downward and shrinks in the sun?
Hint
Answer
How to solve riddles like this
- Ask what happens to the thing in the riddle over time or in different weather.
- Not every "what do you call" riddle is a pun. Sometimes the answer is a simple fact.
- Think about what things are made of. Snow, ice, and water are all the same stuff.
- Picture the story going forward in time, like a short film. What would you see on the first warm day?