From South to North Trivia Quiz

Answer: Lend sand

Land's End is situated on the western tip of Cornwall and is a renowned beauty spot and tourist attraction. They wouldn't really need to have sandy beaches to increase the tourist trade, since it's so popular anyway. The Longships Lighthouse is located around a mile offshore to warn ships of the dangers of getting too close to land.

Despite this, there have been many shipwrecks around the coast, including the 'Torrey Canyon' in 1967, which was an ecological disaster.

Answer: Dandles

The origins of the word 'dandle' are obscure, although it has been around since the sixteenth century. Some dictionary definitions give an alternative meaning of petting, as in to caress a pet, but the 'amusing a baby' usage seems to be more common.

Answer: Sadden

The dictionary definition is 'to make or become sad'. You can sadden someone by your behaviour - not doing as you have been asked, or leaving without an explanation. The word 'sad' comes from Middle English, and derives from the Old English word for sated.

Answer: Sedan

A sedan chair was an early taxi, for conveying the wealthy around - they couldn't possibly walk, of course. It consisted of a box, in which the person sat, with poles running horizontally so the whole contraption could be carried. The name also applies to car models designed for families - they are more commonly called saloons in the UK.

Answer: Dans

Dan Dare is a comic book hero, created in the 1950s while Dan Aykroyd is a Canadian actor. His credits include 'The Blues Brothers' (1980) and 'Chaplin' (1992). Dan Marino was quarterback for the Miami Dolphins from 1983 until 1999, spending his whole career with the same team.

Answer: And

Conjunctions are the linking words in our sentences. 'And' is just one of them, although it's among the most used. Others include 'for', 'but' and 'or'. I was always taught that it was incorrect grammar to begin a sentence with a conjunction, but times seem to have changed.

Answer: An

There are two indefinite articles - 'a' and 'an' and one definite article - 'the'. 'An' is used in front of words beginning with a vowel, as in 'an apple' or 'an orange', with 'a' is used in the same way for words which start with a consonant, such as 'a banana'.

Answer: Na

Na is the symbol for sodium, a white metal which is found in compounds in nature. The one known to most people is NaCl, sodium chloride, which is salt, used by many of us to flavour and/or preserve food.

Answer: DNA

Deoxyribonucleic acid, conveniently shortened to DNA, was discovered originally in 1869 by Friedrich Miescher and further researchers added more to our understanding of its place in our development into the people we are. Watson and Crick, who are the scientists most of us associated with DNA, discovered its structure in 1953.

Answer: Darn

To mend something by darning entails weaving threads, by hand or machine, into a patch to mend a hole, often in the heel of a sock. I suspect that this is a lost art and most of us would just buy new clothes rather than mend them. Darn, as an oath, is a milder way of saying damn, which was deemed unacceptable language in polite conversation.

Answer: Randy

Only the country music singer Randy Travis was given the name as it stands. Both Newman and Rhoads were named Randall, with Randy being the diminutive version. Randy Newman wrote songs such as 'You Can Leave Your Hat On', which featured in the 1997 film 'The Full Monty'. Randy Rhoads was a heavy metal guitarist who died in a 'plane crash in 1982.

Answer: Darnay

Charles Darnay was the man saved by the hero, Sydney Carton, who took Darnay's place on the guillotine. Carton resembled Darnay closely enough to pass for him, and sacrificed himself because of his love, unreturned, for Darnay's wife, Lucie.

Answer: Lanyard

Lanyards are used to make sure important items don't get lost, and can look very similar to dog leads. Boy scouts would often have a whistle attached to theirs. The name is also used for for the cords holding identity badges, which need to be on view at all times.

Answer: Lysandra

Lysandra was born to Eurydice, the third wife of Ptolemy I, who was a friend and associate of Alexander the Great. Lysandra married Alexander V of Macedonia, the nephew of Alexander the Great. When Alexander V was assassinated, she remarried and disappeared from history. The Lysandra genus of butterflies includes the Adonis blue and the Chalkhill blue.

Answer: Ronaldsay

South Ronaldsay is the Orkney isle closest to the mainland of Scotland, while North Ronaldsay is the furthest away from land. North Ronaldsay is actually further north than the southernmost part of Norway. Due to their proximity to Norway, the Orkneys suffered many Viking raids, and the islands were also the home to the British Navy during both the major wars of the twentieth century.