# I have a thumb and four fingers, but I am not alive. What am I?

Source: https://silverapuzzles.com/riddles/i-have-a-thumb-and-four-fingers-but-i-am-not-alive-what-am-i

A hand-shaped riddle. The description matches a human hand in every detail except one: the thing is not alive. Think about what covers a hand.

**Answer:** A glove.

A glove has the shape of a hand, but nothing inside it is alive.

Hint: You wear me in winter.

## How to think about it

1. A thumb and four fingers describe a hand. The riddle says the object is not alive, so it is hand-shaped rather than a hand.
2. Ask what is shaped exactly like a hand because it is made to fit one.
3. Mittens have a thumb but no separate fingers, so they are out.
4. A glove has a thumb and four fingers of its own and no life in it.

## Why “a glove” is the answer

A glove is sewn with five separate pockets, one for the thumb and four for the fingers, so it “has” a thumb and four fingers without being alive. The riddle works by describing the shape of a hand and leaving out the hand. A mitten fails because it only has one pocket for all four fingers.

## Common wrong answers

- **A mitten.** A mitten has a thumb but keeps the four fingers together in one pocket, so it does not have four fingers.
- **A mannequin.** A mannequin’s hand has fingers and is not alive, but the whole mannequin is a body, not a hand-shaped object.