What's 'Nu'? Trivia Quiz

Answer: Numbat

A numbat is a small, insectivorous marsupial (Myrmecobius fasciatus) whose diet consists almost completely of termites. Numbats are also variously known as walpurtis or banded anteaters. They were once commonly found across the whole of southern Australia, but are now restricted to protected colonies in Western Australia. They have fallen victim to habitat loss and introduced predators such as feral cats and are classified as under serious threat of survival. The numbat has a reddish brown coat with white stripes down its back. As would be expected of an animal that feeds on insects and termites, it has an elongated pointed snout coupled with a long thin tongue as well as strong claws for excavating and rounding up those tiny varmints. Unlike most marsupial species, numbats are diurnal.

The word numbat comes from a mispronunciation of the word 'noombat' or 'noongar' in the language native to the indigenous people of the York and Tongay districts that lie east of Perth. Numbat has also entered Australian slang as an affectionate term for someone who is charmingly inept.

Answer: Nuance

A nuance is a subtle distinction or variation of something. In vocabulary, it is used to change or give a different emphasis or slant to words. An example of this is when the word is used to describe the different ways in which actors portray the same role. Consider Sean Connery's "James Bond" and then Roger Moore's. They are essentially the same character, but, given the actors' nuances, the result is quite different. The key to understanding nuance is subtlety. It might not always be easy to spot, but it can make a big difference. In colour terms, it used to describe a slight difference of shade. Have you ever tried to buy a tin of paint to match the one already on your wall and it doesn't work? They look the same on the chart, but next to each other you can tell the difference. That's a nuance.

Nuance was borrowed from French in the late 18th century. The first recorded use of it in English came around 1775. It actually originated with the Latin word 'nubes' which means cloud. This then evolved into the Middle French word 'nue' and then 'nuer' which both mean 'to cloud'. It is thought that this was in reference to the subtle distinctions in shade found in clouds.

Answer: Nugget

I'll share a nugget of information with you. For such a handy word, very little is actually known about the origins of the word itself. It has multiple accepted definitions, all of which revolve around the same principle. A nugget is a small lump of something that's valuable. It was originally used to describe a naturally occurring piece of valuable metal such as a gold nugget. Today, it has also come to mean a tidbit of information that is wise and true as well as a small, round piece of food, thanks to the invention of the chicken nugget by Robert C Baker in 1963.

The prevailing theory about the origin of the word is that it comes from the word 'nug' in the dialect of southwest England where it means 'lump'. The other credible theory is that it is a corruption of 'an ingot', a term used to describe a bar of precious metal. The first recorded use of the word took place between 1850 and 1855.

Answer: Nudnik

You know that person who has reminded you umpteen times about the same thing? Or always complains about anything and everything... ad nauseum? The one who asks you the same question over and over again because they don't agree with or like your original answer? The kind of person you cross the room to avoid talking to unless you absolutely have to? That's a nudnik or a nudnick, as it is sometimes spelt. The word is borrowed from Yiddish, the language that is responsible for so many descriptive words we use daily and that always seems to hit the nail firmly on the head.

Its origins are Slavic with the word coming from the Russian word 'nudnyi' and the Polish word 'nuda' which, appropriately, both mean 'to bore' or 'boredom'. It is now an accepted word in modern Hebrew, so useful is it. The first recorded use of the word in English occurred in the early 20th century.

Answer: Nullify

For those of you who watch sport, a simple example of the definition of nullify is when a team or person scores or wins a point, only for it to be overruled by the officials and not recognized as valid. In other words, they nullify the effect. Nullify means to 'make legally null and void' and cause 'something to have no value'. Nullifying something overrides the original action, thereby cancelling the effect of one thing on another. It comes from the Latin word 'nullificare' which means 'to make nothing' The word was around from the mid 16th century, although the first recorded use in English didn't come until 1607.

The term has been in use in both a legal and political sense for centuries. Thomas Jefferson used in 1798 when the drafting of the Virginia and Kentucky Resolution was being done.

Answer: Numbskull

Common synonyms for numbskull are blockhead, bonehead, dunce, dunderhead and my all-time favourite, nincompoop. They all beautifully describe that foolish or muddleheaded person who doesn't think clearly or who might not not the shiniest little shell on the beach. That's a numbskull, or numskull as it originally used to be spelt, for you. The word comes from the Old English word 'num' which meant 'to take or seize' as in 'he was num with shock' with the subsequent lack of clear thought that a shock brings.

There is no valid etymological reason that anyone has yet been able to figure out as to why the letter 'b' was added to the original word. It is known, however, that the author of "Gulliver's Travels", Jonathan Swift, used the newer spelling in a letter he sent to a friend. The word became popular around the end of the 17th and beginning of the 18th centuries to express a low opinion of someone's intelligence.

Answer: Nuzzle

As a mom to two adopted furkids, nuzzle is a frequently used word in our household. It sums up that action where a little cold, wet nose is repeatedly pushed into your hand while a warm, furry body wraps itself lovingly around your legs. Nuzzle is defined as 'rubbing or pushing gently against something with the nose or mouth in a way that shows love and affection'.

It comes from the Middle English word 'noselen' or 'noselyn' which meant to 'bring the nose towards the ground' or 'to burrow with the nose' It came into use in the early 16th century and its modern meaning of showing affection is thought to have connections to the now unused word 'nurstle' which meant 'to nurse' as in a baby breast feeding.

Answer: Nuncio

A nuncio is an ecclesiastical diplomat who serves as the permanent reprsentative of the Pope in a foreign country or court that maintains ties with the Catholic Church. It is the Vatican or Holy See's equivalent of an ambassador. The rank of nuncio is only appointed to those countries that abide by the Congress of Vienna (1814-1815) decision that a representative of the Pope automatically becomes the dean of the diplomatic corps in that country. There are various lower levels of the post, including pronuncio and internuncio who appointed to those countries who don't grant this right.

The role of nuncio was never formally established on a specific date. Rather the role developed gradually in courts across Europe after it first appeared in the 16th century. The word comes from Early Italian and has its roots in the Latin word 'nuncius' which means messenger.

Answer: Nutria

Nutrias (Myocastor coypus) are large, semiaquatic rodents native to South America that have become an invasive and problematic species across large swathes of North America and beyond after they were introduced to these areas through the fur trade in the early 20th century. They are also known as swamp rats and copyu are are considered to be valuable fur providers, having a dense soft underfur with long shiny outer hairs. As nutrias spend a large portion of their time in water, this fur makes for a water resistant pelt. The designation 'Myrocastor' means 'beaver rat' and describes the animal very well as it looks like a cross between a beaver and a rat. One of distinguishing features are the two oversized front teeth which are bright orange in colour.

The name nutria comes from the Spanish word 'lutria' which means otter. Somewhere along the line, the 'L' was replaced with an 'N'. The first known use for the term in English comes from around 1811 and was originally used to designate the fur or pelt. Through the years though it has now become a common and accepted name for the animal itself.

Answer: Nutmeg

Nutmeg is the spice, so beloved of eggnog drinkers, made from the seed of an evergreen tree known as the 'true nutmeg' or 'fragrant nutmeg' (Myristica fragrans). This very useful tree which is native to the Molluca islands in Indonesia, actually produces two spices; nutmeg from the seed and mace from the outer covering of the seed. Although the tree is endemically Indonesian, the word nutmeg comes from Old Occitan, a language spoken in southern France in the late Middle Ages and its phrase, "noz muscado" which roughly translates to 'musky nut'. Variations of this phrase are also found in early Dutch, German and French.

An interesting thing (well, it was to me) is that nutmeg is also a term used in association football to describe a tactic where a player plays the ball straight through the legs of his opponent. As with most words, there have been different theories about the origin of the term. The one I enjoyed comes from Peter Seddon in his book "Football Talk - The Language and Folklore of the World's Greatest Game" (2004). He postulates that it originated from the chicanery that went on in the nutmeg trade between the USA and Britain where wooden replicas were intermingled with genuine seeds in the sacks exported to Britain because of the value of nutmeg as a commodity. This practice gave rise to the term 'wooden nutmeg' which meant trickery or deceit where the victim was made to look naive and foolish. Hence nutmeg became popular in Victorian slang to denote anything false or fraudulent.