If you really want to get to know someone there is no better way than asking thought provoking questions. These can range from simple questions about a person’s hopes and dreams to more private discussions about their past relationships or outlook on life. Asking the right question can tell you a lot about a person and how they live their life.
While thought provoking, these questions don’t always have to be serious, with many hilarious queries providing lots of laughter while also revealing valuable insights into your family, friends, or partner’s true self. As the saying goes, laughter is the best medicine.
There are literally hundreds of different things you can ask when getting to know somebody. Everything from what their favorite thing in the world is to their greatest strength or who made the most impact on them. All of these questions and more can be great conversation starters. But if you are unsure where to start, we’ve got you covered.
Below is a collection of 130 thought provoking questions that will have everyone playing along involved. We’ve broken down the questions into different sections so you can start with something low-key or funny before getting into a deep conversation. So read on and get some questions ready to ask your family, friends, and partner.
130 Thought Provoking Questions That Will Get You Thinking
Simple Thought Provoking Questions
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These simple thought provoking questions are great to get the ball rolling. They encompass a wide range of topics that will provide you with an opening into your family, friends, or partner’s thoughts. A great question can really make somebody think and give pause for self reflection.
1. Do you think social media is impacting people’s mental health? How often do you use social media?
2. What are the day-to-day things you do that really make you feel good?
3. How do you perceive time? Is it just a construct?
4. Do you have an inner monologue? If so, is it asking you deep questions or narrating your life?
5. If you could erase your bad memories like in the movie Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, would you do so?
6. In your life, have you been happier when you’ve had a lot of options, or when your options were limited?
7. Is honesty the best policy or are white lies acceptable?
8. Do you believe in astrology and horoscopes?
9. Would you rather have more time to yourself or more money?
10. Can there be any ethical means of consumption under capitalism?
11. How do you avoid losing sight of your personal goals and identity?
12. Who do you listen to for advice and why?
13. If you could choose to be any animal, what animal would you choose to be?
14. Do you believe there are parallel universes?
15. If you could know the absolute and total truth to one question, what question would you ask?
16. What is your most unusual talent?
17. Can good people do bad things?
18. Do people really ever change or do leopards never change their spots?
19. What’s something you consider to be priceless and why?
20. How do you measure success?
Philosophical Thought Provoking Questions
Sometimes getting to know people’s views on life, humanity, and the human experience gives a great insight into their way of thinking. A question about a person’s philosophy on life will really make them think. You are sure to get some very interesting answers and it’s a good way to see if you are on the same wavelength.
21. What do you believe is the meaning of life?
22. Do you believe in god? Why or why not?
23. Has technology had a better or worse impact on humanity?
24. Do you think we are living in a simulation?
25. Is it more important to be rich and famous or happy and content?
26. If robots can think, do they deserve the same rights as humans? And will they destroy civilization?
27. Is it easier to love or to be loved?
28. Would you want to live forever if that was a possibility?
29. Is the glass half empty or half full?
30. Do guns protect people or kill people?
31. Can anyone be truly happy in life?
32. Do people exist simply to live or do they live to exist?
33. Would you want to remember every detail of your life? Why or why not?
34. Is humanity doomed to head in a destructive direction?
35. If money cannot buy happiness, can you ever be truly happy with no money?
36. Do you believe in true love and that there is one person for everyone?
37. Is humanity inherently good or evil?
38. Would you sacrifice yourself for the greater good?
39. What is the difference between living and being alive?
40. How do you find purpose in life when you don’t know what the end game is?
Life and Death Thought Provoking Questions
When talking about life and death there are no right questions or wrong answers. Humans have very different views on these subjects and what they think about loved ones and their time on the planet. These questions will have them thinking about their entire life and the choices they have made.
41. Are you afraid of dying?
42. If you found out the world was ending in a year, how would you spend your time?
43. If there were a way to download your memories into a searchable spreadsheet, would you do it?
44. How has death impacted you?
45. If you could have a second chance at one event in your life, what would you choose? What would you do differently? How would your life be different now?
46. Would you have any regrets if you died today?
47. If you could tell your younger self any one thing, what would it be?
48. What do you want to be remembered for when your life is over?
49. What are the three most important things in your life?
50. What do you believe happens after we die?
51. If you knew you would live forever, what changes would you make in your life or would you live the same?
52. Do you want to be buried or cremated?
53. Have you ever had a near-death experience? If so what happened and did you see the white light?
54. What three songs would you like played at your funeral and why?
55. What age would you be happy to reach before your life ended?
56. Would you rather live life alone with all the money in the world or in a loving relationship but struggling to make ends meet?
57. What word best describes the way you’ve spent the last month of your life?
58. What are you sure of in life?
59. What does happiness mean to you?
60. What constitutes a well live life in your opinion?
Funny Thought Provoking Questions
Not all the questions you ask have to be about what is the right thing to do in life or provide a life lesson as an answer. Some can be funny questions that will have everyone laughing and lighten the mood a little while still allowing you to find out more about a person.
51. If you could make one thing illegal, what would it be?
52. What fictional character would you like to become real and why?
53. If you could eat as much of one food as you wanted without ever getting full or fat, which food would you choose?
54. What would you ask your pet if you could talk to animals for the day? If you don’t have a pet, what animal would you want to talk to?
55. Do you think you could easily be swayed to join a cult?
56. Is it ever better to never show up or worse to be late?
57. What body part wouldn’t you mind losing?
58. How would you react if you woke up to learn that life is a fully immersive simulation?
59. Do you believe in magic?
60. What is the funniest thing you’ve read or seen this week?
61. If you were one of the seven dwarfs, which one would you be?
62. What is something popular now that will be frowned upon in five years?
63. What is the most embarrassing moment in your life?
64. If you were given $500 to spend on anything in an adult store, what would you buy?
65. What is the weirdest conspiracy theory you believe in?
67. If you got three wishes from a genie, what would they be?
68. What is your escape plan for the zombie apocalypse?
69. If you had an intro song every time you walked into a room, what would it be and why?
70. If you could change your name, what would you change it to?
Deep Thought Provoking Questions
While you can say philosophical questions get pretty deep, the questions under this header are more about the life of the person who is answering them. They will hopefully shed more light on the person’s personality and what they feel and want from life. They might reveal a harsh truth or bad thing about themselves. Whatever the case, you are sure to form a deeper connection.
71. If you were given only one week to live, how would you spend it?
72. What is the lie that you tell yourself most often?
73. What do you wish you could change about yourself?
74. How would you describe yourself in ten words or less?
75. What is your worst habit, and what is keeping you from dropping it?
76. What’s more important to you, a healthy relationship or a big bank balance?
77. What motivates you in life to be a better person and enjoy a fulfilling life?
78. Do you ever doubt yourself and how do you overcome this?
79. Would you change anything about yourself?
80. What are your best and worst personality traits?
81. How do you live a meaningful life with the greatest impact that will provide you with happiness?
82. Would you rather meet your future self and find out how your life turned out or meet your past self and give them advice for the future? Good question right?
83. What are your biggest fears in life? Do you want to overcome them?
84. If you had all the money in the world, what would you do with your life?
85. Where in the world would you love to live and why?
86. What is the greatest adventure in your life so far?
87. What is your greatest strength and your greatest weakness?
88. Would you lie to your friend or spouse for a large sum of money? How much?
89. Who has had the greatest impact on your life and how have they done so?
90. When do you feel most alive?
Weird Thought Provoking Questions
These weird and wonderful questions will have people thinking hard about some crazy topics. Similar to the section on funny thought provoking questions, these will provide a few giggles and maybe even some strange looks. Either way, they are great questions to get a conversation started and probe somebody a little deeper than usual.
91. What would you do if aliens invaded earth?
92. Do you believe in the supernatural and paranormal? If so, do you have any proof?
93. What do you think dogs dream about?
94. Have you been asked better questions than these
95. What would you do if you found a dead body in a hotel room?
96. Do you think if anything is possible, it’s still possible for anything to be impossible?
97. If you punch yourself in the face and it hurts, are you weak or strong?
98. If you had the chance to invent a country, what would you name it?
99. What do you usually think about while you are on the toilet?
100. If you discovered a beautiful island upon which you may build your own society and you can even make the rules, what is going to be the first rule you will put into place?
101. Do you think it’s scarier to imagine that humans are the most intelligent life form in the universe, or that there is a more intelligent life form out there?
102. If you took out a ship and changed all of its parts until none of the original parts are intact anymore, is it still the same ship or a totally different one?
103. What came first, the chicken or the egg?
104. Why is it that lemon juice has an artificial flavor while dishwashing liquid has real lemons?
105. Imagine if you were gifted an elephant and could not sell it or give it away to a zoo. What would you do with it?
106. Is it a hostage situation if a person with several personalities threatens to kill himself? And how would you deal with what is happening?
107. What would you do if you met your doppelganger? Would you ask them questions and interact with them or leave them be?
108. What is the weirdest text message or email you have ever sent?
109. Which one would you rather do: ask a question someone does not want to answer or give an answer someone does not want to hear it?
110. When Donald Duck gets out of the shower, why does he put on a towel when he normally doesn’t wear any pants?
Relationship Thought Provoking Questions
These questions are similar to deep questions, except they are aimed at relationships. If you are chatting with your date or partner, these questions can really help you understand their thoughts on love and what they expect from a relationship. They really give you some food for thought and will help you both discover more about each other.
111. Do you believe in love at first sight or lust at first sight?
112. What are the qualities you look for in a partner?
113. Do you believe in marriage and why or why not?
114. What is more important, an emotional connection or a physical connection?
115. Are you uncomfortable talking about sex or are you open to discussing what you like and dislike when it comes to the bedroom?
116. How many partners have you told you love them and did you mean it?
117. Do you think you should share your body count with your partner? If so, what is yours?
118. What makes a person beautiful, both on the outside and inside? Are you attracted to outer or inner beauty more?
119. How important is sex in a relationship? How would you handle a partner who doesn’t want sex as much as you or wants it more than you?
120. Do you think jealousy in a relationship is healthy?
121. How would you describe your partner in three words?
122. What are the best things about being in a relationship and what are the worst things about being in a relationship?
123. How important is good communication in a relationship?
124. What are the biggest lessons you have taken from your failed relationships?
125. If your partner cheats on you, do you think you could forgive them, or is that the end of the relationship?
126. What brings you the most joy in a relationship and what brings you down?
127. What fantasies do you have that you would like to try out?
128. What does the ideal relationship look like to you? Do you think you can achieve the perfect coupling?
129. Do you find it hard to open up about your feelings and emotions when in a relationship?
130. What are the signs of a successful and harmonious relationship?