# 53 bicycles: A lateral thinking puzzle **URL:** \ **Category:** Thread Games\ **Created:** [July 9, 2017, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/53-bicycles-a-lateral-thinking-puzzle/790868 "2017-07-09T19:51:32Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 59
**Author:** ![SykoSkotty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c0e974/32.png) [@SykoSkotty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SykoSkotty)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2017, 11:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/53-bicycles-a-lateral-thinking-puzzle/790868/1161 "2017-08-31T11:56:09Z")
Did the wording on the window involve the words “Holocaust” used as a slogan for “low cost?” ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2017, 12:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/53-bicycles-a-lateral-thinking-puzzle/790868/1162 "2017-08-31T12:02:29Z")
> [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](#): > > Did the window display any of the following, or a homonym for any of the following: > > 1. Words in German? > 2. A name of someone in the Nazi party? > 3. The word “Nazi”? > 4. Something about “National Socialist”? > 5. An apparent reference to death camps? > 6. An apparent reference to some other aspect of the Holocaust? 1. Yes. 2. No. 3. No. 4. No 5. No. 6. Sort of. It’s connected, but not directly mentioned. > [@SykoSkotty](#): > > Did the wording on the window involve the words “Holocaust” used as a slogan for “low cost?” 1. No. Very creative, though! 🙂 Note: Coincidence this is my second puzzle involving “Holocaust” related things(this one and the blindfold chess one). Unrelated and purely coincidental. ---
**Author:** ![Knowed\_Out](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/knowed_out/32/7380_2.png) [@Knowed\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knowed_Out)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2017, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/53-bicycles-a-lateral-thinking-puzzle/790868/1163 "2017-08-31T13:35:36Z")
Was the man a concentration camp survivor? Did the window sign have wording that made the man recall a bad experience? ---
**Author:** ![Knowed\_Out](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/knowed_out/32/7380_2.png) [@Knowed\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knowed_Out)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2017, 1:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/53-bicycles-a-lateral-thinking-puzzle/790868/1164 "2017-08-31T13:37:33Z")
> [@SykoSkotty](#): > > Did the wording on the window involve the words “Holocaust” used as a slogan for “low cost?” That was horrible. I still laughed. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2017, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/53-bicycles-a-lateral-thinking-puzzle/790868/1165 "2017-08-31T14:29:11Z")
Was the writing a phrase that taken out of context might seem unoffensive but were used by the Nazis, such as _Arbeit macht frei_? ---
**Author:** ![Folly](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/folly/32/3219_2.png) [@Folly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Folly)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2017, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/53-bicycles-a-lateral-thinking-puzzle/790868/1166 "2017-08-31T14:31:42Z")
Did the writing have the german word ‘die’ (the in english)? ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2017, 2:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/53-bicycles-a-lateral-thinking-puzzle/790868/1167 "2017-08-31T14:31:51Z")
1: Was the wording in English? (I hope so, or most of us will have no hope of figuring it out) 2: Did the wording include one or more words derived from Hebrew? 3: Did the wording include one or more words derived from Yiddish? 4: Did the wording include one or more words that were mistaken for words derived from Hebrew and/or Yiddish? 5: Did the wording include one or more words derived from modern German? (i.e., _not_ from the Old German that a large chunk of English derives from, but modern loanwords) 6: Did the wording apparently include a reference to burning? 7: Did the wording apparently include a reference to “final solution”? ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2017, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/53-bicycles-a-lateral-thinking-puzzle/790868/1168 "2017-08-31T17:42:13Z")
> [@Knowed\_Out](#): > > Was the man a concentration camp survivor? > Did the window sign have wording that made the man recall a bad experience? 1. No(I don’t think so, anyway). 2. Yes. > [@Telemark](#): > > Was the writing a phrase that taken out of context might seem unoffensive but were used by the Nazis, such as _Arbeit macht frei_? No. I wish your question had been slightly different. > [@Folly](#): > > Did the writing have the german word ‘die’ (the in english)? No. > [@Chronos](#): > > 1: Was the wording in English? (I hope so, or most of us will have no hope of figuring it out) > 2: Did the wording include one or more words derived from Hebrew? > 3: Did the wording include one or more words derived from Yiddish? > 4: Did the wording include one or more words that were mistaken for words derived from Hebrew and/or Yiddish? > 5: Did the wording include one or more words derived from modern German? (i.e., _not_ from the Old German that a large chunk of English derives from, but modern loanwords) > 6: Did the wording apparently include a reference to burning? > 7: Did the wording apparently include a reference to “final solution”? 1. Yes. 2. No. 3. No. 4. No. 5. I’m going to say “yes” because it is a German language situation that caused the confusion. It was all in English, though. 6. No 7. No. ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2017, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/53-bicycles-a-lateral-thinking-puzzle/790868/1169 "2017-08-31T18:06:01Z")
was the word \*gift \*part of the sign? (It means \*poison \*in German. [It has caused confusion sometimes](http://www.bbc.co.uk/languages/yoursay/false_friends/german/be_careful__its_a_gift_englishgerman.shtml). ) ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2017, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/53-bicycles-a-lateral-thinking-puzzle/790868/1170 "2017-08-31T18:09:02Z")
> [@Peter\_Morris](#): > > was the word \*gift \*part of the sign? > > (It means \*poison \*in German. [It has caused confusion sometimes](http://www.bbc.co.uk/languages/yoursay/false_friends/german/be_careful__its_a_gift_englishgerman.shtml). ) No. ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2017, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/53-bicycles-a-lateral-thinking-puzzle/790868/1171 "2017-08-31T18:24:50Z")
Is it a problem with a linguistic [false friend](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/False_friend)? That is, an English word with a particular meaning, and a German word with the same or similar spelling, but a completely different meaning? ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2017, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/53-bicycles-a-lateral-thinking-puzzle/790868/1172 "2017-08-31T18:25:55Z")
Is the solution accessible to someone who knows no German at all? ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2017, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/53-bicycles-a-lateral-thinking-puzzle/790868/1173 "2017-08-31T20:16:26Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Is the solution accessible to someone who knows no German at all? I think so for sure. > [@Peter\_Morris](#): > > Is it a problem with a linguistic [false friend](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/False_friend)? Yes. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2017, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/53-bicycles-a-lateral-thinking-puzzle/790868/1174 "2017-08-31T20:19:10Z")
> [@Peter\_Morris](#): > > Is it a problem with a linguistic [false friend](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/False_friend)? Was the word _Jude_? ---
**Author:** ![Knowed\_Out](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/knowed_out/32/7380_2.png) [@Knowed\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knowed_Out)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2017, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/53-bicycles-a-lateral-thinking-puzzle/790868/1175 "2017-08-31T20:37:28Z")
Do we actually have to guess the words? ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2017, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/53-bicycles-a-lateral-thinking-puzzle/790868/1176 "2017-08-31T20:46:57Z")
> [@Knowed\_Out](#): > > Do we actually have to guess the words? They’re not going to guess themselves. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2017, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/53-bicycles-a-lateral-thinking-puzzle/790868/1177 "2017-08-31T21:41:03Z")
> [@Telemark](#): > > Was the word _Jude_? Yes. > [@Knowed\_Out](#): > > Do we actually have to guess the words? Yes. I don’t think it’s all that hard. ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2017, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/53-bicycles-a-lateral-thinking-puzzle/790868/1178 "2017-08-31T21:47:41Z")
“Hey, Jude, don’t make it bad!” ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2017, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/53-bicycles-a-lateral-thinking-puzzle/790868/1179 "2017-08-31T21:48:45Z")
Did the sign include “Jude Law”? ---
**Author:** ![Folly](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/folly/32/3219_2.png) [@Folly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Folly)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2017, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/53-bicycles-a-lateral-thinking-puzzle/790868/1180 "2017-08-31T21:50:07Z")
Was it an advertisement for “Hey Jude,” the Beatles song? I guess in German that would be “Hey Jew” [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/53-bicycles-a-lateral-thinking-puzzle/790868.md?page=58) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/53-bicycles-a-lateral-thinking-puzzle/790868.md?page=60)