Because (I'm) a driver (or a conductor)

This quiz is a trick question that makes you picture ordinary passengers when you hear the term “packed commuter train.” But the people who really get to sit every day are the train driver and the conductor. No matter how crowded it is, they can sit in the driver’s seat or the conductor’s seat. It’s not obvious from a typical perspective, but because their jobs guarantee them a seat, they can always sit even on a packed train every day.

Because the clothes were originally pure black.

This puzzle is a trick question that requires a shift in perspective. The problem statement draws attention to the idea of a detergent that can remove any stain, but it actually leaves out information about the color of the clothing itself. Detergent removes stains, but it doesn’t remove the color of the fabric. In other words, if the clothing was originally jet black, no matter how much you wash it, it will remain jet black. This shows the importance of letting go of assumptions and approaching problems with flexibility.

Grandfather and grandmother

Many people tend to think of animals like the monkey, the dog, and the pheasant, but at the beginning of the story Momotaro is born from a peach that floated down the river and first meets the old man and the old woman. He encounters the animal retainers during his journey, but considering the overall flow of the tale, the old man and the old woman are the first ones Momotaro meets. It’s a trick question that tests whether you remember the details of the story.

12

This is a trick question. People tend to misread it as “How many months have only 28 days?” but the question is “How many months have 28 days?” February usually has 28 days, but all the other months also have a 28th day, so the answer is 12. Every month qualifies.

up; above; on; over; top

This riddle uses a wordplay on “kudaranai,” which can also be written as ‘下らない’ (literally, ‘not going down’). Since the expression relates to ‘down,’ the trick is that instead of going ‘down,’ you go ‘up.’ Normally, the destination wouldn’t be clear, but because ‘kudaranai = 下らない,’ meaning ‘not going down,’ the answer is ‘up.’ Puzzles that play with meanings and sounds like this have a humorous twist that can make you laugh.

living room

This quiz is a trick question aimed at older adults who enjoy humor and wordplay. In Japanese, the phrase “imanimo” in “imanimo nakidasōna hito” (a person who looks like they’re about to cry) sounds the same as “ima” (living room) plus “nimo” (also/too). Reading it as “ima nimo” can be reinterpreted as “also in the living room,” thereby referring to an actual place. It’s a quiz that uses puns and double meanings, and people who tend to interpret phrases intuitively are more likely to be tripped up by it.

sea

At first glance, you might assume the answer is a prefecture name (like Nagano or Saitama), but the answer is actually “the sea.” Japan is an island nation, and many prefectures face the sea. In other words, the sea can be said to be the entity that borders the most prefectures. Looking at a map, more than 20 prefectures have coastlines, so the sea “touches” more prefectures than any single prefecture does.