O: What does Y-E-S spell?
A: Yes
O: What does E-Y-E-S spell?
A: Eyes
O: Dammit, you were supposed to say “E-Yes”!
According to the informant, this is one of those riddles that is meant to give the performer a good laugh. From my understanding, the setup is designed to detect the fool. “Eyes” is a seemingly easy word but the moment it’s spelled out for you in the riddle, logic usually goes out of the window. This can make a fool out of even the smartest of us because it’s not really about intellect, it’s about listening.