Situation puzzles inspired by real events

Landlords used to delay payment to people who built and repaired houses or even booted them out without money. But the builders came up with an uncommon move, which immediately made the landlords pay them in full. What did they do?

Why is it better to have round manhole covers than square ones?

There were many reasons why John enjoyed coming here. But his wife Mary hated this place, as did other women in the city. Why?

George was late for a math class and misunderstood the teacher. This brought him a reward and recognition! What happened?

One day Mark hid his watch. What for?

An artist took an order to paint a portrait of a very ugly and arrogant woman. Everyone tried to dissuade him, claiming that she wouldn’t pay a penny, because the portrait would be bad. And so it happened. But two days later, the woman returned and begged the artist to sell her the portrait. Why?

Due to an oversight committed by Nils when doing his job, Martha, an upstairs neighbour, couldn’t wash the dishes. At the same time, Martha’s husband was glad, but Nils was still fired. Why?

A company produced knives for peeling potatoes. The manufacturers wanted to increase sales of their products and decided: if the knives disappear more often in homes, then housewives will buy new ones. How did they embody their idea?

Bill always wore a silk scarf to work, whatever the weather. What’s his job, and why does he need this scarf?

In the 1940s, a real football game in Brazil ended with an unusual score of 0.5 - 0. What happened?

They had to throw away plenty of their valuables, but it didn’t made them upset. What happened?