Turn, Turn, Turn Trivia Quiz

Answer: Rotate

Re-arranging the letters in 'a torte' gives the answer, rotate, which comes from the Latin 'rotare' meaning to roll. As well as referring to something moving around a fixed point, rotate can be used when farmers grow different crops in different fields at different times, or when jobs are shared amongst a group of people in turn.

An American businessman, Norman Ralph Augustine (born 1935) said, "If the Earth could be made to rotate twice as fast, managers would get twice as much done. If the Earth could be made to rotate twenty times as fast, everyone else would get twice as much done since all the managers would fly off."

Answer: Gyrate

Re-arranging the letters in 'at grey' gives the answer, gyrate, which comes from the Latin 'gyrare' meaning to move in a circle. Gyrate can also refer to changes in currency or stock market values, or to particularly fast, and often sexual, dancing.

The American essayist and naturalist, Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862) wrote, "How can a man sit down and quietly pare his nails, while the earth goes gyrating ahead amid such a din of sphere music, whirling him along about her axis some twenty-four thousand miles between sun and sun, but mainly in a circle some two millions of miles actual progress? And then such a hurly-burly on the surface .... Can man do less than get up and shake himself?"

Answer: Curve

Re-arranging the letters in 'cure V' gives the answer, curve, which comes from the Latin 'curvare' meaning to bend. Mathematically, a curve was defined by Euclid as a one dimensional quantity, which has length, but no width or height; it can be thought of as a trace left by a point moving along.

Felix Klein (1849-1925), a German mathematician wrote, "Everyone knows what a curve is, until he has studied enough mathematics to become confused through the countless number of possible exceptions."

Answer: Bend

Re-arranging the letters in 'den B' gives the answer, bend comes from the Old English 'bendan' meaning to tension a bow by using a string. In heraldry, a bend is a diagonal line across a shield. In knotting, a bend is used to join two lengths of rope.

The American singer, Eartha Kitt, (1927-2008) said, "The river is constantly turning and bending and you never know where it's going to go and where you'll wind up. Following the bend in the river and staying on your own path means that you are on the right track. Don't let anyone deter you from that."

Answer: Diverge

Re-arranging the letters in 'dire veg' gives the answer, diverge, which comes from the Latin 'dis' meaning two ways and 'vergere' meaning to incline. Diverge can be defined as to become different or to follow a different direction. Mathematically, a divergent series is an infinite series which does not tend towards a fixed limit.

James William Fulbright (1905-1995), an American academic and politician, said, "There is an inevitable divergence between the world as it is and the world as men perceive it."

Answer: Veer

Re-arranging the letters in 'ever' gives the answer, veer, which comes from the French 'virer', which is regarded as an alteration of the Latin 'gyrare' meaning to move in a circle. Meteorologically, a wind which veers moves in a clockwise direction; if it goes the other way it is described as backing.

In her journal, Sylvia Plath (1932-1963), an American author and poet, wrote, "There is still time to veer, to sally forth, knapsack on back, for unknown hills over which...only the wind knows what lies. Shall she, shall she veer?"

Answer: Spin

Re-arranging the letters in 'pins' gives the answer, spin, which comes from the Old English 'spinnan' meaning to draw out and twist a fibre. Spin can also be used to describe a pleasure trip in a car, to refer to an aeroplane plunging out of control, or to indicate a measure of the angular momentum of an elementary particle.

The Scottish singer and songwriter, Annie Lennox (born 1954) said, "I have different hats; I'm a mother, I'm a woman, I'm a human being, I'm an artist and hopefully I'm an advocate. All of those plates are things I spin all the time."

Answer: Revolve

Re-arranging the letters in 'Rev. Vole' gives the answer, revolve, which comes from the Latin 're' meaning back and 'volvere' meaning to roll. Apart from referring to physical movement around a central axis, revolve can also be used to describe deep thinking about a topic.

Michael Easton (born 1967), an American actor, said, "The world doesn't revolve around me anymore. Now it's all about this little baby. I come home after a rough day, I see her and she smiles and nothing but that matters. I know that sounds really cliche but it's the truth."

Answer: Pivot

Re-arranging the letters in 'to VIP' gives the answer, pivot, which is a late Middle English word and comes from the French 'pue' meaning tooth of a comb and the Spanish 'pua' meaning 'point'. When used as a noun, pivot can refer to the most important person or thing in a situation, as well as the point about which something turns.

Eric Ries (born 1978), an American entrepreneur, wrote, "Famous pivot stories are often failures but you don't need to fail before you pivot. All a pivot is is a change in strategy without a change in vision. Whenever entrepreneurs see a new way to achieve their vision - a way to be more successful - they have to remain nimble enough to take it."

Answer: Swerve

Re-arranging the letters in 'veer SW' gives the answer, swerve, which comes from the Old English 'sweorfan' meaning to turn aside. Swerve is usually used to refer to a sudden change in direction, both a physical movement, or a change in thought.

An English novelist, Mary Webb (1881-1927) wrote, "If you stop to be kind, you must swerve often from your path."