Riddle: What lives during the winter but dies when the summer comes?

Introduction / Context:
This riddle is about natural phenomena that depend on cold weather. It asks what "lives in the winter" but "dies in the summer". The words "lives" and "dies" are used metaphorically to describe something that exists only under specific temperature conditions and disappears when those conditions change. The riddle expects you to think of ice and snow, which form in winter and melt in warmer seasons.

Given Data / Assumptions:

• The subject exists in winter, when it is cold.
• The subject disappears in summer, when temperatures rise.
• Options include plants, animals, an icicle, none of the above and a snowman.
• We interpret "lives" and "dies" as appearing and disappearing, not as biological life and death.

Concept / Approach:
Icicles are hanging pieces of ice that form when water drips and freezes in cold weather, often on roofs, trees or ledges. They are common in winter in cold climates. As temperatures increase towards summer, icicles cannot survive; they melt and vanish completely. This makes them a perfect match for the riddle. While snowmen also melt in summer, the single word "icicle" is a more traditional riddle answer and directly tied to winter conditions.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: Identify characteristics the answer must have: it must appear or "live" in winter and disappear or "die" in summer. Step 2: Consider plants. Many plants actually grow well in spring and summer, not only in winter, so they do not fit. Step 3: Consider animals. Animals do not simply vanish in summer; they may hibernate in winter and be more active in summer. Step 4: Think about ice based objects: snow, snowmen and icicles. These exist only when temperatures are low enough for water to stay frozen. Step 5: Recognise that icicles are a clear, natural example: they form in winter and melt away when it gets warm. Step 6: Compare with a snowman. A snowman is made by people rather than forming naturally, so "icicle" is the more standard riddle solution.

Verification / Alternative check:
To verify, imagine a cold winter day when icicles hang from roof edges. As the seasons change and summer heat arrives, those icicles melt completely. There is no trace of them left. This matches the idea of "dying" when the summer comes. Plants and animals, by contrast, generally survive from season to season, and many thrive in summer rather than disappear. Snowmen can also melt, but they require human construction and are not as universal a winter feature as icicles.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Option A, plants, often flourish in warm seasons; many even die back in winter and grow in spring and summer.

Option B, animals, adapt to different seasons through migration or hibernation; they certainly do not all die in summer.

Option D, none of the above, is wrong because there is a clear and fitting answer among the options.

Option E, snowman, could melt like an icicle, but is a less precise answer because it depends on human activity and is not always present in winter.

Common Pitfalls:
Some learners focus too literally on living organisms and overlook non living things like ice. Others choose "snowman" because it is a fun image, but classic riddle collections usually prefer answers that are natural phenomena rather than human made figures. Always check which option best fits every part of the description, including the idea of existing purely due to winter weather.

Final Answer:
The thing that "lives" in winter and "dies" in summer is an icicle.