Picture Time Rhymes Trivia Quiz

Glad Lad

Glad just means to be pleased or happy. It is used in a couple of idioms such as:

'Glad rags' referring to dressy clothes.

To 'give someone the glad eye' meaning to look at someone in a way that shows that you find them sexually attractive.

A 'glad hand' is a warm welcome or greeting often prompted by ulterior motives.

Lad is a synonym for a boy or young man. Someone referred to as 'a bit of a lad' is known for his prowess with the opposite sex.

Fickle Pickle

Fickle was first used in the 13th century meaning to change your opinion or feelings suddenly and without a good reason.

In this context a pickle is a vegetable or fruit preserved in vinegar or in salty water, especially a cucumber. It can also be a sauce that is made with these that has spices added to it.

As a noun it can refer to the solution or a bath used for preserving or cleaning.

In Scotland it means a grain, kernel or other small quantity.

Alternatively it also means a difficult situation.

Damp tramp

Damp means to be slightly wet and uncomfortable.

As a noun it refers to the hazardous situation when there is water in the walls of a house causing harmful effects.

Black damp is a carbon dioxide mixture occurring as a mine gas that is incapable of supporting either life or a flame. It was especially prevalent in coal mines and miners used to use a canary as an early warning system. Safety lamps are still used where the flame is designed to extinguish when oxygen levels fall too low.

A 'damp squib' refers to something that is disappointing because it is not as exciting or effective as expected.

A tramp is defined as a person with no home, job or money who travels around and asks for money from other people.

It can also mean to walk long distances with heavy steps or an iron plate that protects the sole of a shoe.

A tramp steamer is a ship that doesn't make regular trips but takes cargo when and where it offers and to any port.

It is also used as a derogatory term for a woman who has many sexual partners.

Sinister Minister

Sinister is something making you feel that something bad or evil might happen. It is a presage for ill fortune or trouble.

It also refers to anything situated to the left or on the left side of something. Left handed people are thus referred to as sinister.

A minister can be a member of the government who is in charge of a particular department or has an important position in it.

It also refers to a religious leader in certain Christian churches, particularly in Protestant faiths.

In this context 'sinister minister' becomes an oxymoron as well.

Gory story

Gory literally means involving violence and blood.

We refer to things being 'in gory detail' meaning to include the small facts or pieces of information that are unpleasant or interesting in a shocking way.

A story can be a description, either true or imagined, of a connected series of events. In this context it can also be a fictional narrative shorter than a novel.

It is also used to denote how many floors are present in a building (alt spelling).

Better sweater

Better is an adjective that denotes something of a higher standard or more suitable, pleasing or effective than other things or people.

It's also a gauge of something that has improved in accuracy or performance like 'getting better' after an illness or injury.

Common idioms include 'better late than never', "better luck next time', 'better safe than sorry', 'go one better' and 'better the devil you know.'

A sweater is a piece of clothing, typically with long sleeves and made from wool, that is worn on the upper part of the body.

This is commonly called a jumper or pullover in the UK and commonwealth nations.

Flower power

A flower is the part of a plant that produces seeds, it is often brightly coloured and usually has a pleasant smell.

Power can be a person, organization or country that has control over others, often because of wealth, importance or great military strength.

It is a synonym of strength and electricity. In maths it refers to the number of times that a number is to be multiplied by itself.

Flower Power was a slogan used in the 1960s and 70s referring to the belief that people should love one another and lead peaceful lives. It originated in opposition to the ongoing Vietnam War and was a symbol of passive resistance and nonviolence.

Hippies embraced this counterculture and the term became synonymous with their lifestyle in later years.

Beef thief

Beef is the flesh of cattle eaten as food.

To beef something up is to make it stronger or more important or it can be a complaint as in 'I've got a beef with them'.

A thief is literally a person who steals.

Common idioms include 'like a thief in the night' meaning to do something secretly or unexpectedly and without being seen.

'It takes a thief to catch a thief' as in one dishonest person can guess what another dishonest person might do.

Marriage carriage

Marriage is defined as a legally accepted relationship between two people in which they live together or the official ceremony that results in this.

Common-law marriage is a marriage that is not official but is accepted because the people have lived together for a very long time. De facto relationship is the more common usage in this day and age.

A marriage of convenience is one in which the partners have married not because they love each other, but in order to gain some sort of advantage, such as the right to live in the other partner's country.

A carriage is a vehicle, mainly used in the past, with four wheels that is usually pulled by horses.

It can also be any of the separate parts of a train in which the passengers sit.

In the UK it is the name for the act or process of transporting goods.

In the US they use the term 'baby carriage' for a pram.

The way in which a person moves or keeps their body when they are standing, sitting, or walking is also referred to as their carriage

Spaghetti confetti

Spaghetti is pasta made in the form of long, thin strings.

It is derived from the Italian word spaghetto, which in turn comes from spago, meaning thin string or twine.

Confetti are small pieces of coloured paper that are thrown at celebrations particularly over the bride and groom after a wedding. It originated in medieval Italy where sugared almonds that were called confetti were thrown at weddings as a symbol of fertility and prosperity.

It can be made from a variety of other substances particularly Mylar and metallic materials. In later years, with the concern for the environment and the clean-up processes, many venues have banned artificial confetti. They have been replaced by natural materials such as grains, seeds and rice.

Mean queen

Mean has a few different definitions depending on its context. The first is an adjective describing a nasty person who is characterized by petty selfishness or malice.

The second can be identified by following "I mean to" as in an intention to follow a purpose they have in mind.

"I meant" can be followed by an explanation or definition to clarify a position.

Mathematically it refers to the middle position in a series of things.

A Queen is a woman who rules a country because she has been born into a royal family or a woman who is married to a king.

It can also refer to any woman who is considered to be the best at what she does.

In a set of playing cards she is usually worth less than a king and sometimes an ace. In chess it may be the king that needs to be in checkmate but the queen is the most powerful piece on the board.

In the animal kingdom a mature female cat kept for breeding purposes is known as a queen and in a group of some insects, a queen is the single large female that produces eggs.

Late freight

Refers to being near the end of a period of time or to happen or arrive after the planned, expected, usual or necessary time.

It can also mean to be dead, defunct, deceased, departed or devoid of life.

Some common idioms are:

Arrive late to the party - to find out about something, or start becoming involved in something, later than most other people.

Late in the day - too late to be useful or help in any way

Too little, too late - not enough of something that should have been provided earlier.

Freight is goods (but not passengers) that are carried from one place to another by ship, aircraft, train or truck. It can be used as an adjective to describe these vehicles as in 'freight train.'

It is also used as the money paid for transporting the goods.

Last blast

Last is to come after everyone or everything else or to be the only one that is left. 'The last minute' is the latest possible opportunity for doing something.

It is also the name of a cobbler's tool shaped like a foot that a shoe can be made or repaired on.

The 'last word in something' is the best or most modern example of something and 'last but not least' means importantly, despite being mentioned after everyone else.

A blast is to explode or destroy something or someone with explosives or to break through or hit something with a similar, very strong force.

It also means to criticize someone or something severely.

If a rocket 'blasts off' it leaves the ground to go into space.

Pub grub

Pub is short for 'public 'house' which is a place, especially in the UK, where alcoholic drinks can be bought and drunk and where food is often available.

A grub is an insect in the stage when it has just come out of its egg.

It also means to search for something by digging, turning over earth and digging up roots and stumps.

In this context it is the slang term for food.

Pub grub is just that - food that is bought at a pub. Originally these were plain but filling home-style kinds of foods but many pub menus can now rival a restaurant's.

Cap snap

A cap is a soft flat hat that has a curved part sticking out at the front, often worn as part of a uniform. It is also a thin waterproof hat that stops your hair getting wet when swimming or taking a shower.

A very small amount of explosive powder in a paper container, used especially in toy guns to produce a loud noise is also known as a cap.

A monetary cap is a limit on the amount that can be charged or spent in connection with a particular activity.

To 'go cap in hand to someone' is to ask someone in a polite and sincere way for something, especially money or to be forgiven.

"To cap it all' - used when you mention something in addition to all the other bad things that have happened.

A snap is a catch or fastening that closes or locks with a click or to make a sudden closing of the jaws and seize something sharply with the mouth.

To 'snap at someone' is to utter sharp, irritable biting words usually as a retort.

To snap something means it breaks with a sharp sound or people can snap when they are under emotional stress or strain.