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Quiz about Hidden Meanings
Quiz about Hidden Meanings

Hidden Meanings Trivia Quiz


Words often hide meanings they no longer have. Just see how good a linguistic sleuth you are.

A multiple-choice quiz by flem-ish. Estimated time: 5 mins.
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Author
flem-ish
Time
5 mins
Type
Multiple Choice
Quiz #
147,529
Updated
Dec 03 21
# Qns
10
Difficulty
Tough
Avg Score
6 / 10
Plays
1135
- -
Question 1 of 10
1. What medieval European fashion-centre did "milliners" get their name from originally? Hint


Question 2 of 10
2. In which country did "kowtowing" have its literal meaning of showing submission by a respectful bow? Hint


Question 3 of 10
3. Which of these names of a disease was based on the mistaken belief that it was caused by the "bad air" emanating from marshes? Hint


Question 4 of 10
4. In what name did the word "pandemonium" (uproar, chaos) have its origin? Hint


Question 5 of 10
5. In what job or profession did the word "blackguard" have its origin? Hint


Question 6 of 10
6. What is the correct link with the origin of the word "trivial"? Hint


Question 7 of 10
7. What was a 'parlour' originally? Hint


Question 8 of 10
8. What type of ape got its name from Malay for "man of the wood" or "wild man"? Hint


Question 9 of 10
9. What did 'parole' originally mean? Hint


Question 10 of 10
10. Which seven-letter word now means 'tearful' and 'sentimental' and derives from the name of a Biblical character and female contemporary of Jesus?

Answer: (Think Magdalen College.)

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Sep 17 2024 : Guest 45: 10/10
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quiz
Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts
1. What medieval European fashion-centre did "milliners" get their name from originally?

Answer: Milan in Italy

Milliners first were producers of ribbons and fancy cloth. Later the word got the more limited meaning of hatmakers.
Milan in Lombardy was a banking-centre, but also a centre of fashion as it is still today.
2. In which country did "kowtowing" have its literal meaning of showing submission by a respectful bow?

Answer: China

In Chinese koutou literally means to knock the head.
It practically meant: to kneel and touch the forehead to the ground in token of homage, worship or deep respect.
Later this developed into the more general meaning: to show obsequious deference.
3. Which of these names of a disease was based on the mistaken belief that it was caused by the "bad air" emanating from marshes?

Answer: malaria

Romans believed that mal aria (bad air in Italian) was caused by the infectious air in the local marshes. It was only later that a mosquito - btw not the tsetse fly - , was identified as the true culprit.
4. In what name did the word "pandemonium" (uproar, chaos) have its origin?

Answer: the name of the capital of Hell in Milton's "Paradise Lost"

Hobbes wrote about "Leviathan" in 1660.
5. In what job or profession did the word "blackguard" have its origin?

Answer: kitchen servants having to handle black pots

Such kitchen-servants were probably recruited among the lower classes, and may have been looked down on by their masters as 'the scum of the earth'.
Shoeblackers are more recent than the word blackguard.
Nightwatchers did not wear black armour.
And there can be little doubt that the Black Watch did not consist of ..blackguards.
6. What is the correct link with the origin of the word "trivial"?

Answer: A "trivium" or a crossroads was where people gossiped.

The "quadrivium"(music;arithmetic;geometry and astronomy) was considered to be on a higher level than the "trivium", but that did not yet mean those disciplines were considered as "worthless".
Trivial was indeed linked to what "everybody can talk about in the most common places possible". Therefore "commonplace", "not of any real importance".
7. What was a 'parlour' originally?

Answer: Room where monks could talk to visitors.

Now there are icecream-parlours; beauty-parlours etc.
8. What type of ape got its name from Malay for "man of the wood" or "wild man"?

Answer: orang-utan

'Hutan' means forest. 'Orang' is man. It cannot be denied that the Malay language saw some similarity between men and apes already before Darwin had formulated his theories on evolution.
9. What did 'parole' originally mean?

Answer: Solemn undertaking by a prisoner of war to abide by certain conditions in exchange for privileges.

Parole did not necessarily mean prisoners of war could return to their homecountry, but it gave them a certain amount of comfort and freedom, often in exchange for a promise not to take up arms any more against their captors.
10. Which seven-letter word now means 'tearful' and 'sentimental' and derives from the name of a Biblical character and female contemporary of Jesus?

Answer: maudlin

Mary of Magdala or Mary Magdalena is often depicted as weeping profusely.
Source: Author flem-ish

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor fringe before going online.
Any errors found in FunTrivia content are routinely corrected through our feedback system.
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