People have been left stumped after reading a riddle over and over again before realising that it actually does make sense, and puzzle lovers are divided over the answer
Riddles, brainteasers, and optical illusions can all be seriously tricky to figure out, but there’s nothing more satisfying than when you actually crack it and work out the answer. You might feel a wave of relief, or even a sense of achievement and superiority over your friends who didn’t manage to crack the puzzle.
One “toughest” riddle has left people stumped, however – and no matter how many times they read it, they’ve been left seriously confused. The Language Nerds shared the puzzle on their Facebook page to leave people confused, forced to read it out loud to make it make sense.
For those who would like to give it a go, the puzzle is this:
A teacher is marking off the attendance roll when she comes across the name ‘Hijkm’. She says: “I’m sorry, I’m not sure how to pronounce that name.”
Then spells it out. A girl raises her hand and says: “That’s me, and it’s pronounced Noelle.”
Do you understand the puzzle? Some may be able to work out why the name is spelled so differently straightaway, but most people have labelled it the “toughest” puzzle they’ve ever faced.
People were left confused, and didn’t understand how the child’s name could be Noelle. Think you’ve cracked it? Read on to see if you got it right…
The answer
The best thing to do if you can’t figure it out is to read Hijkm again.
It follows the pattern of the alphabet, starting with H: H, I, J, K, M. But there’s one missing.
It should be H, I, J, K, L, M if it were correct.
So what is in the second sequence that isn’t in the first? That’s right, an L.
So what is there in the name Hijkm? That’s right…no L.
Say ‘no L’ out loud. – and it sounds just like Noelle. Congratulations – you’ve figured it out!
Did you manage to figure it out on your own? If so, you need to give yourself a massive pat on the back because it’s a tricky one.
In the comments, someone said: “That took me a couple of read-throughs”.
Some confused commenters wrote: “From which planet is Hijkm from?”
One man fumed: “That’s funny, unless you know a teacher who had a child whose parents were stupid enough to name their kid ABCD, allegedly pronounced Absidee”.
Someone wrote: “When someone asks me my surname, I tell them Waters. All too often, they write the more common Walters. So I say it and then spell it out. In December, however, I also say ‘no L, as in Christmas’ and wait for the penny to drop”.
A Facebook user penned: “My sister had no middle name. So, in registering for classes, in the blank for middle name, she wrote None. The girl beside her said, ‘No-nay! That’s a pretty name’!”
