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The Ups and Downs of Writing Trivia Quiz

Start with a six-letter word (a profession). The next word will be one letter less and may need to be unscrambled. After you get down to one letter, I'll begin to add letters to make a new word. Have fun!

A multiple-choice quiz by reedy. Estimated time: 5 mins.

Author
reedy

Time
5 mins

Type
Multiple Choice

Quiz #
411,844

Updated
Feb 14 23

# Qns
10

Difficulty
Very Easy

Avg Score
10 / 10

Plays
340

Awards
Top 20% Quiz

Question 1 of 10

1. The first word of six letters is the title of someone who writes stories for a living.

Answer: (6 letters)

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Question 2 of 10

2. Drop a letter and rearrange the rest to name the first five books of the Hebrew Bible (Tanakh).

Answer: (5 letters)

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Question 3 of 10

3. Drop another letter and rearrange the rest to make a word that signifies a solemn promise.

Answer: (4 letters)

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Question 4 of 10

4. Lose another letter and rearrange the rest to make a word that describes how spicy something is.

Answer: (3 letters)

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Question 5 of 10

5. Again, drop a letter and rearrange the rest to come up with an abbreviation for a Midwestern U.S. state.

Answer: (2 letters)

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Question 6 of 10

6. Drop one last letter to leave yourself with the title of a 2001 movie starring Mekhi Phifer, Julia Stiles, and Josh Hartnett.

Answer: (1 letter)

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Question 7 of 10

7. Now add a letter to make a word that is Latin for 'bone.'

Answer: (2 letters)

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Question 8 of 10

8. Add a letter and rearrange them to come up with a term that means to cry noisily.

Answer: (3 letters)

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Question 9 of 10

9. Add another letter and rearrange them to describe what you might hear when the referee makes a bad call.

Answer: (4 letters)

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Question 10 of 10

10. Finally, add one last letter to provide the word that describes what libraries most like to lend.

Answer: (5 letters)

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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. The first word of six letters is the title of someone who writes stories for a living.

Answer: Author

The origin of the word 'author' is rooted in the Latin 'auctor,' which has the meaning of 'one who gives increase (an originator, causer, doer, founder), and figuratively was used for 'authorship, agency, encouragement.' (etymologeek.com)

Of course, authors write more than just stories... as soon as you create anything in writing, you become an author. And you can author more than just writing. It applies to plans and ideas, as well.

2. Drop a letter and rearrange the rest to name the first five books of the Hebrew Bible (Tanakh).

Answer: Torah

The Torah is the compilation of the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, or Tanakh. These coincide with the first five books of the Old Testament of the Christian Bible, namely Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy.

The Hebrew meaning of Torah is 'instruction,' 'teaching,' or 'law.'

3. Drop another letter and rearrange the rest to make a word that signifies a solemn promise.

Answer: Oath

When swearing an oath, tradition holds that it is a solemn promise made that invokes some authority, such as a god or a ruler, or even to an ideal. An oath is considered to be a stronger promise than just a regular promise, which has nothing binding it other than one's word.

4. Lose another letter and rearrange the rest to make a word that describes how spicy something is.

Answer: Hot

There are a lot of meanings for the word hot, including the one about rating how spicy a food is. It typically refers to heat and the many ways it is produced (hot water, hot fire, hot to the touch), but can also refer to something new and exciting (hot topic, hot off the press) or beautiful (hot guy or girl). And if you're quick enough, you'll get through this quiz in a hot minute!

5. Again, drop a letter and rearrange the rest to come up with an abbreviation for a Midwestern U.S. state.

Answer: OH

In October of 1963, the U.S. Postal Service standardized the list of two-letter abbreviations for every state. Three states begin with the letter O, and since none of them had the same second letter to deal with, it was easy enough to assign OH to Ohio (and OK to Oklahoma and OR to Oregon).

6. Drop one last letter to leave yourself with the title of a 2001 movie starring Mekhi Phifer, Julia Stiles, and Josh Hartnett.

Answer: O

"O" (2001) is a modern retelling of Shakespeare's play "Othello," set in an American high school. Mekhi Phifer plays the part of Odin James (Othello), while Julia Stiles plays Desi Drable (Desdemona) and Josh Hartnett plays Hugo Goulding (Iago).

7. Now add a letter to make a word that is Latin for 'bone.'

Answer: Os

The term 'os' is used in medical terminology, but not typically by laypeople. 'Os' is used as the root for such related terms as 'ossicles' (the tiny bones of the ear), ossuary (a container or room where bones are placed), and osteoporosis (a condition in old age when bones become porous and fragile).

8. Add a letter and rearrange them to come up with a term that means to cry noisily.

Answer: Sob

Sobbing as a loud crying is often accompanied by big, shuddering intakes of breath, as one is crying so hard it is difficult to manage even breathing, much less something like talking. Similar terms include 'bawl,' 'wail,' or 'blubber.'

9. Add another letter and rearrange them to describe what you might hear when the referee makes a bad call.

Answer: Boos

Booing a sports official has become a favourite pastime of many, but the origins for this way of showing disapproval came from 19th-century British theatre, and meant to be a disparaging imitation of a cow.

10. Finally, add one last letter to provide the word that describes what libraries most like to lend.

Answer: Books

The kind of books you get at a library could be defined as the story being read - 'a long written or printed literary composition,' or even the physical 'set of written, printed, or blank sheets bound together between a front and back cover.' The likely origin of the word came from the Germanic 'bokiz,' meaning 'beech' and referring to beechwood tablets on which runes were inscribed.

Today, of course, books can come in electronic or audio formats, and are not 'bound' by the physical.

Source: Author reedy

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor Fifiona81 before going online.
Any errors found in FunTrivia content are routinely corrected through our feedback system.

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