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Opened or closed, I continue to be.
A mechanism of choice, But I can be beastly.

I come in all shapes and sizes, Each with a common task.
I cling to life by a thread, What am I, I ask?

Added hint:

I can be made out of anything from A to Z, and sometimes have eyes with which I can't see.

Another Hint:

I hate to give another hint but there have been a ton of views and guesses, but here it is:
I have a few close friends, just like a pea, and I jump through hoops for everyone around me.

This is part 1 in a series by the way. The final part will use clues from each.

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    $\begingroup$ I don't know why this was put on hold after someone had already guessed the right answer. It's a rhyme riddle. Definitely not to vague. $\endgroup$
    – Z. Dailey
    Mar 3, 2016 at 17:49

11 Answers 11

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You might be:

a button

Opened or closed, I continue to be.

If you are buttoned up or not, you are still button.

A mechanism of choice, But I can be beastly.

Buttons are very often used, but some of them can be very tricky to unbutton.

I come in all shapes and sizes, Each with a common task.

Buttons come in all shapes and sizes, but they are all used to connect two pieces of clothing.

I cling to life by a thread, What am I, I ask?

Buttons are sown to clothes by a thread.

Hint 1:

I can be made out of anything from A to Z, and sometimes have eyes with which I can't see. Buttons can be made from many materials and they can have the holes for thread to be sown.

Hint 2:

I have a few close friends, just like a pea, and I jump through hoops for everyone around me. Buttons usually come in rows, like on a shirt. When you button up the shirt, you pass each button through an opening/hoop.

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  • $\begingroup$ Ding ding ding. We have a winner! $\endgroup$
    – Z. Dailey
    Mar 3, 2016 at 15:45
  • $\begingroup$ Even used the words "BUT there have been a TON" in the second hint. No one seemed to catch that. $\endgroup$
    – Z. Dailey
    Mar 3, 2016 at 15:47
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You could be

A trap

Open or closed I continue to be

Whether open or closed, a trap is still a trap

A mechanism of choice

Many traps operate through trickery.

I can be beastly

A number of animals (beasts) make traps

I come in all shapes and sizes with one common purpose

Pits, snares, cages... Lots of types of traps all designed to catch the unwary.

I cling to life by a thread

I 'm thinking of spider webs here

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  • $\begingroup$ Nope. Great thinking tho. $\endgroup$
    – Z. Dailey
    Mar 2, 2016 at 21:57
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I think you are

a mouth

Large and in charge

Rushing in to take charge, asked or unasked, is something people with large mouths do

Opened or closed, I continue to be

A mouth can be opened or closed

A mechanism of choice,

When you inform others of your choice, you say it with your mouth

But I can be beastly.

The thing we fear most about beasts are their mouths

I come in all shapes and sizes, Each with a common task.

human mouths, beaks, snouts - there are many actual mouths in the animal kingdom. Their different tasks are important in evolutionary theory, e.g. the species of bird which differ by bill shape because one is for eating bugs and the other for nuts. Beyond that, there are mouths of jars etc. with different shapes and tasks

I cling to life by a thread, What am I, I ask?

The vocal "cords" are attached to the mouth, "cord" is synonymous of "thread" and people can die from a spasm in the pharynx area which shuts off air supply, possibly also in the vocal cords.

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  • $\begingroup$ Nope. I'll add a hint in a few if no one gets it. $\endgroup$
    – Z. Dailey
    Mar 2, 2016 at 22:28
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You could be

A mind or brain

Open or closed I continue to be

People can be open or closed minded

An instrument of choice

We choose with our minds

But I can be beastly

All the fiercest beasts are controlled by their minds (hence large and in charge)

I come in all shapes and sizes with one common task

From elephants to fleas, they are all keeping their hosts alive

I cling to life by a thread

The spinal cord is the brain's connection to the body

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  • $\begingroup$ Nope. I'll add a hint in a few if no one gets it. $\endgroup$
    – Z. Dailey
    Mar 2, 2016 at 22:28
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A new guess.

An eye - I have no idea why only my anatomical associations work for this riddle. I swear I tried others.

Large

Large eyes are common

and in charge

sight is the dominant sense of most people

Opened or closed, I continue to be.

eyes can be opened or closed

A mechanism of choice,

We choose between things by their looks

But I can be beastly.

The eye of the beast

I come in all shapes and sizes,

There are different shapes in humans, like almond eyes, Asian eyes, round eyes, etc. And in animals, there are many sizes of eyes.

Each with a common task.

All eyes are for seeing

I cling to life by a thread, What am I, I ask?

In cartoons, an eye popped out of the socket is held in place by the optical nerve

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I think you are

A word

Opened or closed, I continue to be.

Both "Opened" and "closed" are words.

A mechanism of choice,

You say "yes" or "no"

But I can be beastly.

Words can be insulting, painful, etc.

I come in all shapes and sizes,

Words can be long/short and have different letter shapes.

Each with a common task.

Each word has a particular meaning

I cling to life by a thread, What am I, I ask?

Not sure about this one...

Added hint:

I can be made out of anything from A to Z, and sometimes have eyes with which I can't see.

Words are composed of letters, and can include "i"s (which are not eyes)

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  • $\begingroup$ Welcome to Puzzling! Great first answer! $\endgroup$
    – Deusovi ♦
    Mar 3, 2016 at 3:15
  • $\begingroup$ Sorry, not it. Keep trying. $\endgroup$
    – Z. Dailey
    Mar 3, 2016 at 3:40
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I think you are...

Money.

Opened or closed, I continue to be.

Accounts used to track money are opened and closed, but money is not contained or stored in such accounts, they only track/measure it.

A mechanism of choice, But I can be beastly.

We choose to use it as a mechanism for exchange. But it causes us so much grief, we're constantly trying to reform, change, regulate, etc. in order to mitigate the problems it causes us.

I come in all shapes and sizes, Each with a common task.

Cash, and other tokens representing money have many forms. Coins and notes of many shapes and sizes, plastic chips, shells, beads, stuffed toys, cheques, IOUs, etc. The common task is providing a trusted exchange mechanism.

I cling to life by a thread, What am I, I ask?

It is only the fragile trust of the people that keep any currency going. The abstract and virtual nature of money as a resource means that this thin thread can easily break, as we have seen in recent events, and as we continue to see more and more often.

I can be made out of anything from A to Z, and sometimes have eyes with which I can't see.

Anything can be used as a money token, and over the years so many items have been. Some money has people's faces printed on it, the eyes that cannot see, for money is blind as to how it was earned - a drug dealer or a charity worker can take their notes and spend them without anyone knowing how they earned it.

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  • $\begingroup$ your answer to the hint is actually really creative, but still no. $\endgroup$
    – Z. Dailey
    Mar 3, 2016 at 3:38
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I would say you are a

Chain

Large and in Charge

Chains secure objects, they are in charge!

Opened or closed, I continue to be.

Whether open or closed, a chain is a chain. (-_-)

A mechanism of choice, But I can be beastly.

Chains can be chosen for various purposes but the can be beastly. Example: large chains tied to anchors of boats.

I come in all shapes and sizes, Each with a common task.

They come in all shapes and sizes but have a common task. To secure the object. Tie 'em up.

I cling to life by a thread, What am I, I ask?

A chain is a kind of string / thread. If it breaks then technically the chain is dead. (X.X)

Hints: I can't relate it to first hint, but for the second: I have a few close friends, just like a pea, and I jump through hoops for everyone around me

A chain has numerous links connected to it in succession ~~~~~~ kind of like peas. The chains do go through hoops to seal the objects.

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  • $\begingroup$ about the hint 1...CHAIN have letter I in it's word $\endgroup$
    – manshu
    Mar 3, 2016 at 11:18
  • $\begingroup$ yes but it says sometimes i have eyes.. so i thought the relation must be more than a letter. $\endgroup$
    – Ghapla
    Mar 3, 2016 at 11:23
  • $\begingroup$ also there is the A to Z part... $\endgroup$
    – Ghapla
    Mar 3, 2016 at 11:29
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    $\begingroup$ 'chain' has synonyms....'strand' and 'string'...out of both 'strand' do not have letter I...So I think the hint could have been used to limit the word to 'chain' $\endgroup$
    – manshu
    Mar 3, 2016 at 11:34
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I think you are

A switch!

Opened or closed, I continue to be.

A switch can be either opened or closed, but it is there.

A mechanism of choice, But I can be beastly.

Switch is essentially a mechanism of choice. Yet sometimes it may not work, thus can be beastly.

I come in all shapes and sizes, Each with a common task.

We can find switches in all shapes and sizes but the task is same.

I cling to life by a thread, What am I, I ask?

Switch needs a wire (thread) to close/open the circuit.

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This is not the intended answer(my achievement)

I would like to join in with the word

Electricity

Opened or closed, I continue to be.

Depends on circuit

A mechanism of choice, But I can be beastly.

It can kill you

I come in all shapes and sizes, Each with a common task.

Depends on the material in which it is flowing.

I cling to life by a thread, What am I, I ask?

We use wire for our household electricity

Hint 1 : I can be made out of anything from A to Z, and sometimes have eyes with which I can't see.

Electricity has letter I in it.

Hint 2 : I have a few close friends, just like a pea, and I jump through hoops for everyone around me.

Electrons jump from one atom to another while conducting electricity.

Large and in charge

Voltages can be large. And flow of electricity surely is caused by flow of charge.

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A bullet

Opened or closed, I continue to be.

Fired or unfired.

A mechanism of choice, But I can be beastly.

Violent but likely the most convenient for its cause.

I come in all shapes and sizes, Each with a common task.

Different calibers and shapes but all made to harm or kill.

I cling to life by a thread, What am I, I ask?

The rifling that serves to extend the flight?

I can be made out of anything from A to Z, and sometimes have eyes with which I can't see.

Buckshot?

I have a few close friends, just like a pea, and I jump through hoops for everyone around me.

Like peas bullets are next to eachother in a magazine. Jumping through hoops means getting fired maybe?

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