In the Words of Shakespeare Trivia Quiz

Answer: Gloomy

Gloom was derived from the Norwegian word "glome" and was originally a verb that meant to gloom, or to look sullen. In time, the verb was used as a noun that carried the meaning of darkness. Shakespeare added the suffix "y" to the noun gloom and created the adjective gloomy.

The word gloomy can be found in "Henry VI" Part I, Act V, Scene IV (1598) ("But darkness and the gloomy shade of death") and "Titus Andronicus" Act IV, Scene I ("Forced in the ruthless, vast, and gloomy woods?").

This question was crafted by Phoenix Rising team member purelyqing on a gloomy, rainy day - true fact.

Answer: Scuffle

The word "scuffle", believed to be of Scandinavian origin, already existed as a verb during Shakespeare's time. In "Antony and Cleopatra" Act I, Scene I (1607), Shakespeare makes the verb function as a noun in Philo's line:

"His captain's heart, which in the scuffles of great fights hath burst the buckles on his breast, reneges all temper, and is become the bellows and the fan to cool a gipsy's lust."

This question was scuffed by Phoenix Rising team member purelyqing in a scuffle.

Answer: Gossip

The word "gossip" originated from an Old English word "godsibb", which had connections to childbirth; the original meaning had to do with the godparents of a child, or the parents of a godchild. Shakespeare was the first to use it as a verb, and it appeared in two of his plays: In "All's Well That Ends Well" (1623), he uses the line, "With a world of pretty, fond, adoptious christendoms, that blinking Cupid gossips". The word also appears in "The Comedy of Errors" (1594) with the line, "With all my heart, I'll gossip at this feast". Only since the 16th century, has the term "gossip" been associated with a negative connotation.

This question was created by cardsfan_027 after gossiping with his fellow Phoenix Rising teammates.

Answer: To swing or sway

The word "sveggja" means to swing or sway in old Norse. The word swagger makes an appearance in five of the Bard's plays. At first, Shakespeare used the word swagger to refer to a swaying walk. Swagger then developed into denoting someone who is quarrelsome, arrogant, or insolent. It's likely no coincidence that alcohol intoxication, with its characteristic belligerence and unsteady walk, matches the description so well. Maybe Shakespeare was considering a drunk person when he decided to use the word.

Modern research into walking styles has shown some correlations with personality. A person with swagger of exaggerated movements in the shoulders and lower body are paired with someone who is more aggressive in nature, whereas someone with a swagger in just their hips tends to be more friendly and agreeable. Creative individuals, however, often have little to no noticeable swagger. All this to say, we often subconsciously pick up on these clues, allowing us to know how to react to people we first encounter.

Swagger has become a popular word to use in rap lyrics to denote someone who is confident and tough. Jay Z's 2008 hit song "Swagga Like Us" in particular, which was a sample of M.I.A.'s "Paper Planes", popularized the use of the word. Following the debut of "Swagga Like Us", the word swagger has been used over 1000 times in rap lyrics.

This question was written by Phoenix Rising's BigTriviaDawg who will probably be oversensitive to people's swagger for the next few weeks.

Answer: Feeling jealous

William Shakespeare first used "green-eyed jealousy" in 1596 in his play "The Merchant of Venice." At the time, green was a color associated with both jealousy and envy. The term "green with envy" was already well known, but as Shakespeare likes to do, he turned it into "green-eyed jealousy" for his play. More famously, he used "green-eyed monster" in his 1604 play "Othello" where Iago was "kindly" warning Othello not to let the green-eyed monster eat him up as the honest but foolish Othello suspects his Desdemona of unfaithfulness.

Other colors that are considered attached to emotions include red for anger, yellow for cowardice, and blue for sadness. A person's face may turn red when they are angry, possibly why it is associated with anger, but it may also turn red with feelings of love. Maybe yellow for cowardice has something to do with jaundice making a person weak or unhealthy. Artists also may choose a color based on a feeling of warmth or coolness. Bright colors like red, orange, and yellow often are seen as warm, while blues and greens are seen as cool. Advertisers in particular are very purposeful in the colors they use as studies show they can make a big difference in whether a person will buy a product or not.

This question was written by Phoenix Rising's BigTriviaDawg who still loves the color green the most despite the negative association with envy. A trail through a green forest is my happy place.

Answer: Mimic

Mimic is derived from the Latin word "mimicus", which originated from the Greek word "mimikos", meaning of or pertaining to mimes. The root word of "mimikos" is "mimos", meaning imitator, actor, or buffoon in Greek. The word first appeared in English in the form mima or mime, but Shakespeare is believed to have changed the word to mimic in the line from "A Midsummer's Night Dream", Act III, Scene II (1600), "And forth my mimic comes". Modifying words from another language is another way in which Shakespeare invented words.

Marcel Marceau (1923 - 2007) was a French mime artist known for his "Bip the Clown" persona.

Phoenix Rising team member purelyqing tried to mime this question but had trouble converting it to text form.

Answer: Lackluster

The word lackluster was first published in "As You Like It" (1623), spoken by the character Jacques, who said, "And then he drew a dial from his poke, And, looking on it with lack-lustre eye, Says very wisely, 'It is ten o'clock: thus we may see,' quoth he, 'how the world wags."

The word originates from the Middle French word, "lustre" which meant gloss. The modern definition is to lack in force, conviction, or vitality. There are many examples where the term lackluster might be used in everyday life. Perhaps if you go to a restaurant, you may find the service a bit lackluster because of the waitress not coming around often enough, or the food not being to your liking. We have all experienced a lackluster performance at some point.

This question was brought to you by Phoenix Rising team member cardsfan_027 in an attempt to avoid the shame of presenting a question that might be lacking a bit.

Answer: Passive

Shakespeare uses the word over fifty times in "Othello" (1604), usually by or in reference to the character Iago. We know that Iago is the great manipulator in this piece, hence its use is both ironic and evidence as to how easily Othello is duped. In Act 3 Iago uses honest in discussing Cassio with Othello. He calls upon the honour of Cassio or, more to the point, for Othello to question Cassio's honour. In the same act he uses honest to cast doubt on Desdemona's faithfulness and, finally, to indicate to Othello that he may be telling the truth.

There are earlier recordings of the word honest. The Bible speaks of it and so does Geoffrey Chaucer in "The Canterbury Tales" (1476). Coming from the Latin word "honestus", meaning respectable or fine, even handsome, these tend to denote a social standing rather than today's acceptance of it as a social behaviour, notably truthfulness. The changes from being a social standing to a social behaviour over the centuries is evident, albeit subtle, but, as "Othello" shows us, Shakespeare certainly had a hand in it.

Truthfully, this question was put together by Phoenix Rising's honourable and faithful team member, pollucci19.

Answer: Lonely

In "Coriolanus" (1608) our protagonist has been banished and is about to leave Rome. Here at 4.1.18-38 he is speaking to his family, friends and supporters and endeavouring to re-assure them that the solitude (hence the use of solitary in the question) would not change him. Shakespeare adapted the word "lonely" from the word "lone" which, in the 1400s, had become a shortening of the word "alone". Shakespeare showcases his cleverness here, as, in the previous line he also used the word "alone" ("believe not lightly - though I go alone") and, in doing so he placed an emphasis on the solitude that Coriolanus was faced with.

The word lonely would appear in one other Shakespearean work, "A Winter's Tale" (1623), toward the end when Paulina is describing the statue of Hermione. Fen is a word that had been around since the 12th century and dragon would enter the English language in the 13th century. Coincidentally, Shakespeare had previously used the dragon in "King Lear" (1606) "come not between the dragon and his wrath" (1.1.123).

This question was written by Phoenix Rising's pollucci19 who was so lonely that he glued a coffee cup to the roof of his car. Now when he drives around everybody waves at him.

Answer: Critic

The word critic has its original origins from the 1580s from the French word "critique", meaning one who passes judgment, or a person skilled in judging merit in some particular class of things. Further back, the word derived from the Greek root "kritikos", which means the ability to discern or judge. In modern times, there are many notable critical writers of the creative arts such as music critic Lester Bangs, movie critics (Gene) Siskel and (Roger) Ebert, or literature critic Harold Bloom, just to name a few.

Shakespeare first used the word in the comedy "Love's Labour Lost" (1597), when Lord Berowne opines, "a critic, nay, a night-watch constable. A domineering pedant o'er the boy, Than whom no mortal so magnificent!" This is thought to be the first time the term critic was used in the English language.

This question is brought to you by Phoenix Rising team member cardsfan_027 after critically analyzing all of the other questions in this quiz.