Riddle: Where does a snowman keep his money?
Answer: In a snow bank
Riddle Explanation + Meaning
The riddle uses a play on words to create a humorous answer.
Normally, people keep their money in a bank, a place that is safe and secure for storing money.
Since a snowman is made of snow, the riddle suggests that instead of a regular bank, a snowman would keep his money in a "snow bank."
A "snow bank" in real life refers to a pile or mass of snow, usually found by the side of the road or in open fields after snow has fallen and been pushed or blown into a large heap.
The humor and cleverness of the riddle come from imagining a snowman using a pile of snow as a bank, blending the literal meaning of a snow bank with the figurative idea of a financial bank.
This play on words creates a funny and memorable image that explains the answer to the riddle.
Why the answer is a snow bank
This riddle joins two meanings of "bank". A bank is a place where people keep money safe, and a bank of snow is a big pile of snow pushed up by a plow or blown by the wind. A snowman is made of snow and lives outdoors in winter, so the most natural "bank" for him is the one already next to him.
The riddle is not especially hard once you think of the word "bank", but younger children who have not seen deep snow might not know the phrase "snow bank". It helps to show them a picture of a snowy roadside. Other playful answers include "in the ice box" or "in a frozen account", and older kids enjoy "cold hard cash" jokes along the same lines. The snow bank answer stays the favorite because it is a real phrase used in everyday speech.
Where this riddle comes from
This is a classic winter joke of unknown origin, the kind found in holiday joke books and on the back of cereal boxes. It is a pun riddle using a word with two meanings. Seasonal riddles like this are popular in classrooms in December and January, when snow and snowmen are already on everyone's mind.
3 more riddles like this one
What do you call a snowman in the middle of summer?
Hint
Answer
How do snowmen get around town?
Hint
Answer
Why did the boy keep his money in the freezer?
Hint
Answer
How to solve riddles like this
- Look for the word in the question that has a second meaning, such as bank, cash or change.
- Ask what the character is made of, then join that material to the second meaning.
- Think about common winter phrases: snow bank, cold snap, ice box.
- Say the answer aloud to check that it sounds like something people really say.