medium

Illustration for riddle: Oh how I love my dancing feet!
They stay together - oh so neat.
And when I want to walk a line,
They — Can you figure out this riddle?

Oh how I love my dancing feet! They stay together - oh so neat. And when I want to walk a line, They all stay together and do double time. I count them up, ten times or more, And race on-off, across the floor.

A centipede

Why this works

This riddle cleverly describes a centipede through playful imagery and wordplay. The phrase "dancing feet" refers to the many legs of a centipede, which are often associated with movement and agility, while "stay together - oh so neat" emphasizes how these legs work in unison. The line "walk a line" hints at the centipede's ability to move in a straight path, and "double time" suggests its quick, coordinated movements. Finally, "count them up, ten times or more" plays on the fact that centipedes can have numerous legs (often more than 100!), making them seem like they're racing across the floor.

Common Wrong Answers

“A spider”

Spiders have eight legs and do not have the characteristic of having many feet like a centipede, which is explicitly mentioned in the riddle.

“A shoe”

While shoes are associated with dancing and feet, they do not have the ability to move on their own or 'dance' as implied in the riddle.

“A dancer”

Although dancers use their feet to perform, the riddle describes a creature with many feet that can move in a coordinated manner, which does not apply to a human dancer.

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