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Proper Names in Idiom Quizzes, Trivia and Puzzles
Proper Names in Idiom Quizzes, Trivia

Proper Names in Idiom Trivia

Proper Names in Idiom Trivia Quizzes

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If you have "the patience of Job" and aren't a "nervous Nellie", you just might be able to answer the questions in this category of quizzes. Oh, "for Pete's sake", at least give it a try!
5 quizzes and 55 trivia questions.
1.
  Well, DO You Know Jack?   popular trivia quiz  
Multiple Choice
 15 Qns
Each saying, word, or idiom in this quiz contains the word "Jack" or "jack." This is in honor of my new kitten, Jack Rabbit Raymer. He was born on May 5, 2002 (Cinco de Mayo).
Average, 15 Qns, robynraymer, May 05 16
Average
robynraymer
5909 plays
2.
  People's Names Get Attached to Things...    
Match Quiz
 10 Qns
Reword the clue in the question and match it with the correct name to complete a familiar idiom. Example: "Back of foot" in left column would be matched with "Achilles" from right column to give Achilles heel.
Average, 10 Qns, Nealzineatser, Feb 21 22
Average
Nealzineatser gold member
Feb 21 22
332 plays
3.
  Has Elvis Left the Building?    
Multiple Choice
 10 Qns
American English is filled with idioms and peculiar expressions. All of these contain a person's name. Good luck!
Average, 10 Qns, Coonielady, May 05 16
Average
Coonielady
1479 plays
4.
  It's a Guy Thing    
Multiple Choice
 10 Qns
Male first names, and especially their nicknames, show up in numerous common expressions in the English language. Let's see how many you can summon here.
Very Easy, 10 Qns, faridsbabe, Jul 03 19
Recommended for grades: 7,8,9
Very Easy
faridsbabe
Jul 03 19
1863 plays
5.
  Proper Names in Idioms    
Multiple Choice
 10 Qns
Names of people sometimes become names of things, flowers, tools, cocktails, etc. or are used in so-called idiomatic expressions. Test how well acquainted you are with "people-in-language".
Average, 10 Qns, flem-ish, Mar 14 20
Average
flem-ish
Mar 14 20
5568 plays
trivia question Quick Question
You might hear a guy who's really good-looking referred to as a gorgeous _______.

From Quiz "It's a Guy Thing"





Proper Names in Idiom Trivia Questions
1. While out with friends last night, I suddenly noticed that my buddy had disappeared without even saying "goodbye". What expression describes his actions?

From Quiz Has Elvis Left the Building?

Answer: "Pulling a Houdini"

"Pulling a Houdini" refers to a quick and unexplained exit. The expression refers, of course, to the noted performer Harry Houdini, who was famous for his ability to escape from even the most intricate restraints. Harry Houdini died in 1926 at the age of 52.

2. A guy who's known to dress himself stylishly and carefully might be called a dapper ______.

From Quiz It's a Guy Thing

Answer: Dan

Not to be confused with mobster John Gotti, called the Dapper Don, a nickname which was obviously a play on this expression.

3. "Renaissance Man" is a fancier name for a jack of _______.

From Quiz Well, DO You Know Jack?

Answer: all trades

This is someone who has many jobs or many skills and talents.

4. The day after I bought my new car, my neighbor did the same. He came home with one a little bigger than mine that included several extra options. He's always had a penchant for _____________________.

From Quiz Has Elvis Left the Building?

Answer: "Keeping up with the Joneses"

The phrase "keeping up with the Joneses" describes the desire to equal (or outdo) neighbors and friends with possessions and accomplishments. There are several explanations for the origin, including the story of American author Edith Wharton's father, George Frederic Jones. During the nineteenth century, the wealthy Mr. Jones and his friends were well known for their lavish lifestyles and spending habits.

5. A guy who's a stereotypical everyman, not all that highly educated, probably with rather pedestrian tastes, is called an average ______.

From Quiz It's a Guy Thing

Answer: Joe

There are several other terms used to express this idea, including "Joe Six-pack."

6. A hare with extra-long legs and ears is called a _______?

From Quiz Well, DO You Know Jack?

Answer: jackrabbit & jack rabbit

Jackrabbits inhabit the western United States. They can run (bounce) like the wind.

7. A guy who makes a habit of looking at other people and other things in an improper and surreptitious way might be called a peeping _______.

From Quiz It's a Guy Thing

Answer: Tom

There seems to have been a guy called Tom in the Lady Godiva legend. Godiva's husband had decreed that if his wife was going to take that infamous horseback ride, nobody had better watch her doing it. Apparently Tom did; big mistake.

8. What is the name used to describe a man who is given to "furtively" observing women undressing, etc.?

From Quiz Proper Names in Idioms

Answer: A peeping Tom

Tricky Dick was the nickname of a controversial U.S.A. president. Smart Alecks are people who annoy other people by trying to appear to be cleverer and more knowledgeable than them. They might be called "clever Dicks" too. Tourist brochures tend to advertise such pubs as "Dirty Dicks" in Bishopsgate, London, as "must-have-seens". Peeping Tom was the tailor who sneakily tried to peep at Lady Godiva when she rode naked through Coventry.

9. A crow's smaller cousin is called a _______?

From Quiz Well, DO You Know Jack?

Answer: jackdaw

Jackdaws are gray and black. They inhabit Eurasia and Northern Africa.

10. A guy with a marked tendency to be suspicious about everything he's told might be called a doubting ___________.

From Quiz It's a Guy Thing

Answer: Thomas

This expression has a New Testament origin. Thomas was one of the twelve disciples, and expressed skepticism about the resurrection of Christ.

11. Please don't keep popping up and down like a jack-in-the-_______!

From Quiz Well, DO You Know Jack?

Answer: box

The jack-in-the-box has been a popular toy (in various forms) since at least as early as the 16th century. An antique toy dealer informs me that toymakers started making musical jacks-in-the-box (jack-in-the-boxes?) in tin boxes in 1949. This dealer sells all different vintage ones with Mickey Mouse, Barney, you name it.

12. A perfect stranger struck up a conversation with me in the grocery store. When my sister asked me who he was, my answer was "I have no idea. I don't know him from Adam's _________."

From Quiz Has Elvis Left the Building?

Answer: housecat

The origin is unknown but this expression, along with "Adam's off ox" is commonly used in the Southern US when referring to anyone we don't recognize.

13. Someone who has only recently joined a group could be called a ________ -come-lately.

From Quiz It's a Guy Thing

Answer: Johnny

This term can also be used to describe a newcomer in a socio-economic sense: an upstart; a "nouveau riche" sort; someone who's new to the game, whatever the game may be.

14. If something is done very quickly, it can be said to have been done before you could say: __________?

From Quiz Proper Names in Idioms

Answer: Jack Robinson

When Walker Smith Jr. (born May 3,1920, Ailey, GA- d. April 12, 1989)became Sugar Ray Robinson somebody may consciously or unconsciously, have been thinking of this idiomatic phrase. Another "fast guy" is of course "Speedy Gonzales".

15. Here's a nursery rhyme question: Jack _______ could eat no fat. His wife could eat no lean.

From Quiz Well, DO You Know Jack?

Answer: Sprat

And so between the two of them they licked the platter clean.

16. A guy with a knack for doing well at many things is known as a _____ of all trades. Hey, there's a badge for that in FunTrivia!

From Quiz It's a Guy Thing

Answer: Jack

But please note that the full expression reads "jack of all trades, master of none" -- in other words, in order to really excel at any one thing, we usually have to concentrate less, brain-wise and time-wise, on other things.

17. What is the name for wintry weather personified? Jack _______

From Quiz Well, DO You Know Jack?

Answer: Frost

When kids woke up to find windows frosted over with pretty patterns, parents used to tell them that Jack Frost had been there--I guess he's akin to the Tooth Fairy and the Sandman.

18. A guy who can't resist interrupting his normal trajectory in order to pause and gape at something that has usually already created an interruption might be called a looky ____.

From Quiz It's a Guy Thing

Answer: Lou

This term can really apply to both genders but "Lou" is more often a male nickname.

19. A "jack-tar" is a _______.

From Quiz Well, DO You Know Jack?

Answer: sailor

Sailors used tar to seal ships, thus the name.

20. A guy who wants to be your buddy only when things are going well, and is hard to find when they are not, can be termed a good-time _________.

From Quiz It's a Guy Thing

Answer: Charlie

You could also use this expression to describe someone who really loves to party.

21. In the United States how do you commonly refer to a person who in a law-case does not want his name to be revealed?

From Quiz Proper Names in Idioms

Answer: John Doe

Of course "Mr and Mrs Smith" is also a popular way of remaining anonymous when booking a hotel, but John Brown (1800-1859) can hardly be an example of anonymity after all the singing about how his body lay "moldering in the grave".

22. What is a jackanapes?

From Quiz Well, DO You Know Jack?

Answer: an impudent or conceited person

This word apparently came from a nickname for William de la Pole, who was Duke of Suffolk in the 1400s. They called him Jack Napis. Why? I don't know.

23. Another nursery rhyme: Jack be _______, Jack be quick. Jack jump over the candlestick.

From Quiz Well, DO You Know Jack?

Answer: nimble

Seems like Jack was a popular name back in nursery rhyme times.

24. And in closing, let us cast our minds back a few centuries (although this name is still in use today). A guy who has a way with the ladies, even if he's not from Verona, might be called a _______.

From Quiz It's a Guy Thing

Answer: Romeo

Although Shakespeare's Romeo hailed from Verona, Italy, the name literally means a guy from Rome.

25. A worker who cuts down trees is a _______.

From Quiz Well, DO You Know Jack?

Answer: lumberjack & lumber jack

Jack was such a common name that it came to be synonymous with "man." Thus "jack of all trades." Today we use "guy" this way, as in "the phone guy is coming at 2."

26. Where did jack o'lanterns originate?

From Quiz Well, DO You Know Jack?

Answer: Ireland

The Irish used to make lanterns out of potatoes, beets, and turnips to scare away "Stingy Jack," a wandering ghost. After they emigrated to America they found that pumpkins made more satisfactory lanterns (easier to hollow out and carve).

27. Jack is a common nickname for what first name?

From Quiz Well, DO You Know Jack?

Answer: John

That's why they called President Kennedy "Jack."

28. What is or are jackstraws?

From Quiz Well, DO You Know Jack?

Answer: a "pick up sticks" game

In jackstraws, you let fall a number of straws or sticks and try to collect each one without disturbing any of the others.

29. One last nursery rhyme question: Who was Jack's water-fetching partner?

From Quiz Well, DO You Know Jack?

Answer: Jill

Jack and Jill went up the hill to fetch a pail of water.... Thanks for taking the quiz.

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