# What five-letter word doubles its size when you add two letters? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 16, 2000, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-five-letter-word-doubles-its-size-when-you-add-two-letters/41450 "2000-11-16T14:41:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![DropOfaHat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/35a633/32.png) [@DropOfaHat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DropOfaHat)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2000, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-five-letter-word-doubles-its-size-when-you-add-two-letters/41450/41 "2000-11-17T16:21:32Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Lamar Mundane \* > \*\ ***A crossword puzzle clue…** > > 5 letter word > > Clue: Not A to G, not P to Z. \*\* water? is that the answer to the OP?? ---
**Author:** ![Jack\_Batty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jack_batty/32/3201_2.png) [@Jack\_Batty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jack_Batty)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2000, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-five-letter-word-doubles-its-size-when-you-add-two-letters/41450/42 "2000-11-17T16:36:03Z")
There are three words in the English language that end in -gry … Nah, I’m just kidding. Getting back to racinchikki’s riddle. The one where the guy shoots himself after hearing a song on the radio in the car. I remember this one was on this very board a few months ago. It’s something like, he’s a radio DJ. He’s playing a tape over the air to use as an alibi while he goes to kill someone. When he hears that the tape has looped and his alibi is shot, he pulls over and kills himself. Here’s mine (easy one, but the only one I could think of at the moment): A man and his son are on a fishing trip. On the way back they get into a car accident. The father is killed instantly and the son is in critical condition. At the hospital, the surgeon approaches the table, steps back and says, “I cannot work on this boy, he is my son.” How is this possible. ---
**Author:** ![DropOfaHat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/35a633/32.png) [@DropOfaHat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DropOfaHat)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2000, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-five-letter-word-doubles-its-size-when-you-add-two-letters/41450/43 "2000-11-17T16:41:59Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Jack Batty \* > \*\* > A man and his son are on a fishing trip. On the way back they get into a car accident. The father is killed instantly and the son is in critical condition. At the hospital, the surgeon approaches the table, steps back and says, “I cannot work on this boy, he is my son.” How is this possible. \*\* Surgeon’s his mom. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Assailant](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b5e925/32.png) [@The\_Assailant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Assailant)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2000, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-five-letter-word-doubles-its-size-when-you-add-two-letters/41450/44 "2000-11-17T16:43:41Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Mjollnir \* > \*\*What five-letter word doubles its size when you add two letters? \*\* The answer is oxide, **di** oxide. ---
**Author:** ![DropOfaHat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/35a633/32.png) [@DropOfaHat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DropOfaHat)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2000, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-five-letter-word-doubles-its-size-when-you-add-two-letters/41450/45 "2000-11-17T16:47:06Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by The Assailant \* > \*\* > > > [@](#): > > > > \*Originally posted by Mjollnir \* > > \*\*What five-letter word doubles its size when you add two letters? \*\* > > The answer is oxide, **di** oxide. \*\* I for one will be pretty disappointed if that turns out to be the answer (for the record, I did think of it too - I was flipping through “di-” words in the dictionary - but I rejected as being weak. ---
**Author:** ![Lamar\_Mundane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lamar\_Mundane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamar_Mundane)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2000, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-five-letter-word-doubles-its-size-when-you-add-two-letters/41450/46 "2000-11-17T17:09:26Z")
> [@](#): > > water? You are correct, sir. ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2000, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-five-letter-word-doubles-its-size-when-you-add-two-letters/41450/47 "2000-11-17T17:18:04Z")
NOW WAIT JUST A GOLLDARNED MINUTE! WATER??? Not A to G??? What the Sam Hill are you talking about. I’m more confused than a horny blind lesbian in a fish market. (Damn. Told you I had to work on those. And my birthday is only 3 days away - in case you forgot.) ---
**Author:** ![Hokienautic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/73ab20/32.png) [@Hokienautic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hokienautic)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2000, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-five-letter-word-doubles-its-size-when-you-add-two-letters/41450/48 "2000-11-17T17:22:53Z")
Dinsdale … you’re gonna kick yourself when you hear this. Not A to G or P to Z … so it’s in between those. H to O. H20. Water. Ha. Ha. Ha. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2000, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-five-letter-word-doubles-its-size-when-you-add-two-letters/41450/49 "2000-11-17T18:37:36Z")
Damn that’s stupid! Gotta remember it. But, it has nothing to do with the OP, tho, right? DropOfAHat’s post threw me for a loop like an outta control ferris wheel on amphetamines. ---
**Author:** ![starfish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/87869e/32.png) [@starfish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/starfish)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2000, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-five-letter-word-doubles-its-size-when-you-add-two-letters/41450/50 "2000-11-17T18:56:05Z")
[QUOTE] \*Originally posted by BlackKnight \* \*\* > [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by AudreyK \* > \*\* > > > [@](#): > > > > \*\*5. Two men are eating in a restaurant. One man orders albatross soup. The second man gets up, runs over to a window, and jumps out. Why did the second man kill himself? \*\* > > He was once stranded with some people (exact story varies) and one of them disappeared. Shortly later, another person serves the starving group some “albatross”. It is really the missing person, and after the man in the restaurant realizes what albatross really tastes like, he knows he has eaten another person. He can’t live with himself, and so jumps out the window. > > _bows_ \*\* But one man ordered the soup. The second man jumped out the window. Are the “one man” and the “second man” the same? I’ll admit the question used “second man” instead of “other man” ---
**Author:** ![mojopitch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/2bfe46/32.png) [@mojopitch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mojopitch)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2000, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-five-letter-word-doubles-its-size-when-you-add-two-letters/41450/51 "2000-11-17T19:14:24Z")
This has probably been beaten to death as well, but here goes; A woman pushes her car in front of a Hotel. She instantly realizes she’s bankrupt. Why? ---
**Author:** ![DropOfaHat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/35a633/32.png) [@DropOfaHat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DropOfaHat)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2000, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-five-letter-word-doubles-its-size-when-you-add-two-letters/41450/52 "2000-11-17T19:17:24Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by mojopitch \* > \*\*This has probably been beaten to death as well, but here goes; > > A woman pushes her car in front of a Hotel. She instantly realizes she’s bankrupt. Why? \*\* Monopoly game ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2000, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-five-letter-word-doubles-its-size-when-you-add-two-letters/41450/53 "2000-11-17T19:18:34Z")
Hey! I finally got one. Monopoly! ---
**Author:** ![Hokienautic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/73ab20/32.png) [@Hokienautic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hokienautic)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2000, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-five-letter-word-doubles-its-size-when-you-add-two-letters/41450/54 "2000-11-17T20:41:46Z")
Starfish … I think the entire answer is that there was originally three guys, and one of them died. There was also a dead albatross. So they cooked the albatross AND the human flesh and make two pots of stew. They poured them into bowls and mixed them up so neither knew if they had human or albatross. When the first guy ordered albatross soup and ate it, he was immediately relieved to know he was eating the SAME thing he ate before. Therefore, the SECOND man – without eating a thing – knew that it must have been HE who ate the human stew, and killed himself. ---
**Author:** ![Thrashbarg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f4b2a3/32.png) [@Thrashbarg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thrashbarg)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2000, 4:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-five-letter-word-doubles-its-size-when-you-add-two-letters/41450/55 "2000-11-18T04:00:30Z")
What, nobody liked my Scrabble answer? * * * On another tack, my 7yr old had a groaner that stumped me all day, til the 4 yr old answered it: What has two knees and swims? ---
**Author:** ![Geek\_Mecha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/ecae2f/32.png) [@Geek\_Mecha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Geek_Mecha)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2000, 4:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-five-letter-word-doubles-its-size-when-you-add-two-letters/41450/56 "2000-11-18T04:12:51Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by starfish \* > \*\*But one man ordered the soup. The second man jumped out the window. Are the “one man” and the “second man” the same? I’ll admit the question used “second man” instead of “other man” \*\* In the version I know (it seems like no one knows the same variation), the person who was eaten was the wife of the second man. The three of them were stranded on a deserted island a few years back. The wife was killed by the first man, who then serves her as soup to the second man, her husband. Years later, in the restaurant, he realizes what albatross soup really tastes like, realizes what he really ate back on the island, and becomes upset. So he kills himself. Cheerful story, no? ---
**Author:** ![scratch1300](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dfb087/32.png) [@scratch1300](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scratch1300)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2000, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-five-letter-word-doubles-its-size-when-you-add-two-letters/41450/57 "2000-11-18T14:51:50Z")
OK, this thread has been hijacked so often, I’m sure we’ll never get an answer to the OP. So another one won’t hurt. A woman was in a house in the woods, feeling sleepy. After a while, she got up, washed her hands, and felt happy! What color was the woman? ---
**Author:** ![Astroboy14](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/df705f/32.png) [@Astroboy14](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Astroboy14)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2000, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-five-letter-word-doubles-its-size-when-you-add-two-letters/41450/58 "2000-11-18T15:19:15Z")
OK, I’m gonna hijack too (sorry!): You are walking down a road, and come to a fork in the road. Two men guard the fork in the road, and you have been told that one always tells the truth, and one always lies (you don’t know which one lies, and which one tells the truth). You know that one way leads to your destination, and one way leads to certain death (but which fork leads to your destination??). You have also been told that you may only ask one question… SO, what ONE question can you ask to determine the correct way to your destination? I hope I didn’t garble this too much… I have re-read it several times, but I just got in after a night on the town, and I’m a bit buzzed right now… Also, this is not a “trick” question… there IS an answer that makes sense… ---
**Author:** ![scratch1300](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dfb087/32.png) [@scratch1300](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scratch1300)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2000, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-five-letter-word-doubles-its-size-when-you-add-two-letters/41450/59 "2000-11-18T15:48:24Z")
**AstroBoy** , I know! You ask one guy (either one), “In what direction will _he_ tell me to go, in order to fulfill my destiny?”, pointing at the _other_ guy. If you happened to ask Truthy, he’ll point to the Death path that Lie-Boy would have indicated. If you happened to ask Lie-Boy, he’ll point to the Death path, because that’s what Truthy would _not_ have pointed to. So, either way, you go up the other path. ---
**Author:** ![August\_West](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/august_west/32/18069_2.png) [@August\_West](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/August_West)\ **Post date:** [November 18, 2000, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-five-letter-word-doubles-its-size-when-you-add-two-letters/41450/60 "2000-11-18T16:01:44Z")
I believe the woman in the house was as white as snow. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-five-letter-word-doubles-its-size-when-you-add-two-letters/41450.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-five-letter-word-doubles-its-size-when-you-add-two-letters/41450.md?page=4)