The fox, rabbit and cabbage puzzle is a river-crossing riddle that is centuries old (you may know it as the wolf, goat and cabbage puzzle). Here’s the step-by-step answer and 10 more logic puzzles.
Quick answer: take the rabbit first, then bring it back once – it takes 7 crossings.
Contents
- The Riddle
- Answer and Explanation
- 10 More Classic Logic Puzzles
- More Riddle Collections
- Frequently Asked Questions
The Riddle
A farmer is at a river with a fox, a rabbit and a cabbage. His boat can carry only him and one item. If the fox is left alone with the rabbit, it eats the rabbit. If the rabbit is left alone with the cabbage, it eats the cabbage. The fox won’t eat the cabbage. How does the farmer get everything across safely?
Answer and Explanation
1. Take the rabbit across. (Fox and cabbage are safe together.)
2. Go back alone.
3. Take the fox across – and bring the rabbit back with you.
4. Leave the rabbit, take the cabbage across. (Fox and cabbage are safe together.)
5. Go back alone and bring the rabbit across. Everyone is safe on the other side!
The key insight is step 3: you’re allowed to carry something back. (Taking the cabbage over first in step 3 works too – the solution is symmetric.)
10 More Classic Logic Puzzles
Liked that one? Try these – the answers are hidden until you click.
1. You face two doors and two guards – one always lies, one always tells the truth. You may ask one question. What do you ask?
Show answer
Answer: Ask either guard: “Which door would the other guard say is safe?” and take the other door.
2. Three switches outside a room control one bulb inside. You can enter once. How do you find the right switch?
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Answer: Turn switch 1 on for a few minutes, then off; turn switch 2 on and go in. On = 2, off but warm = 1, off and cold = 3.
3. Two ropes each burn in exactly one hour, but unevenly. How do you measure 45 minutes?
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Answer: Light rope A at both ends and rope B at one end. When A is gone (30 min), light B’s other end: 15 more minutes = 45.
4. Four people cross a bridge at night with one torch, two at a time. They take 1, 2, 5 and 10 minutes. Fastest total?
Show answer
17 minutes: 1+2 over, 1 back, 5+10 over, 2 back, 1+2 over.
5. 9 balls look the same but one is heavier. Using a balance only twice, find it.
Show answer
Answer: Weigh 3 v 3, then 1 v 1 from the heavy group (or the third if they balance).
6. With a 3-litre and a 5-litre jug, how do you measure exactly 4 litres?
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Answer: Fill the 5, pour into the 3 (2 left), empty the 3, pour in the 2, fill the 5 and top up the 3: 4 litres remain.
7. In the dark you take socks from a drawer of black and white socks. How many to be sure of a pair?
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3.
8. A snail climbs 3 m up a 10 m well each day and slips 2 m each night. When does it get out?
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Answer: On day 8.
9. Three boxes are labelled Apples, Oranges and Mixed – all wrong. You may take one fruit. How do you fix the labels?
Show answer
Answer: Take one from the box labelled Mixed; it holds only that fruit, and the other two labels follow.
10. A man pushes his car to a hotel and tells the owner he’s bankrupt. Why?
Show answer
Answer: He’s playing Monopoly.
More Riddle Collections
- 20 Logic Puzzles with Explanations
- 50 Hardest Riddles
- 25 Math Riddles
- दिमाग़ी पहेलियाँ – Hindi brain teasers
- The Missing Dollar Riddle – trending
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you solve the fox, rabbit and cabbage riddle?
Take the rabbit over, come back, take the fox over and bring the rabbit back, take the cabbage over, come back and take the rabbit over.
How many crossings does it take?
Seven crossings in total (four trips over and three back).
Is this the same as the wolf, goat and cabbage puzzle?
Yes – it’s the same river-crossing puzzle with different animals.