Idioms of Colour Trivia Quiz

Answer: Red rag to a bull

"Red rag to a bull" means that any specific words or actions that have always brought out a negative reaction from anyone, can do so again at any time if that person is provoked enough by a repetition of same. An example could be a person who always makes negative comments about another's children - guaranteed to make any mother paw the ground in rage. This saying dates back to the 17th century when waving a red rag at anyone meant you wished to converse with that person. The red rag represented the tongue. In a follow up "Classical Dictionary of the Vulgar Tongue", 1785, you will see the term "Shut your potatoe trap, and give your redrag a holiday".

The question above breaks down to red being a colour associated with anger - a scrap of torn material is a rag - a synonym of "also" is "too" - a homophone for "too" is "to" - and the photo clue is of a bull.

Answer: Blonde bombshell

The term "blonde bombshell" describes a fair-haired woman who is absolutely beautiful in every way. If a man, he'd be a "blond" (minus the E) bombshell, but this expression is usually not applied to males. American actress Jean Harlow (1911-1937) was apparently the first woman to be described in this way after her appearance in the 1933 movie "Bombshell". One of the reviews of the time stated "Lovely, luscious, exotic Jean Harlow as the Blonde Bombshell of filmdom."

The question above breaks down as a fair-haired woman is described as a blonde - the photo clue is of a bomb - and the exterior covering of an egg is a shell.

Answer: Brown as a berry

"Brown as a berry" is a description usually applied to a person who is very sun-tanned, but of course this term could also be applied to other concepts as well. This expression dates back at least as far as Chaucer's "Canterbury Tales" written between 1387 and 1400. In "The Monk's Tale" a palfrey (horse) is described being "broune as is a bery".

The question above breaks down to the colour of soil in a healthy garden being usually a lovely deep rich shade of brown - a donkey is an ass, so, cryptically speaking, a short donkey could be described as an "as" - the first letter of the English alphabet is A - and the photo clue is of berries, with one darker one in particular.

Answer: Coat of many colours

"A coat of many colours", a fairly self-explanatory term, dates back to the Bible, where, in Genesis 37:3 (KJV), it states "Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his children, because he was the son of his old age: and he made him a coat of many colours". You could also possibly use this term to describe a person of many talents - or who has many irons in the fire.

The question above breaks down to an external item of winter clothing being a coat - a synonym of "from" is "of" - a word describing "a lot" is "many" - and the photo clue is of assorted colours.

Answer: Black sheep of the family

Describing someone as the black sheep of the family usually means that person has been mixed up in shady deals, or has spent time in prison, or has shamed the rest of the family in some way. It could also mean someone coming from a family with a long history of people working in the one profession, who has decided to follow an entirely different career. An example could be a performer known for his female impersonations - who has come from a family of far right politicians.

The question above breaks down to black being the colour of night - the photo clue is of a sheep - "of" is a preposition - "the definite article", very often a crossword clue, is, in fact, "the" - and a small group of related children and adults is a family.

Answer: Baby blues

"Baby blues", also known as postnatal depression, is a condition that can affect up to 15% of women who have just given birth. It has various symptoms, including anxiety about dealing with a small baby, floods of tears, deep depression, sleeplessness (that's a given), not wanting anything to do with the baby at all, and so on. Most of it passes within a few days, but for some women, it can go on for months, and sometimes with tragic consequences. Seek help ALWAYS! An example of this horrible condition: I had the baby blues badly after my first Caesarian, and the hospital staff wouldn't let me go home until I stopped crying. They also kept giving me Valium - but all that did was make me cry in slow motion. I also decided, because the baby kept losing weight, that they were keeping her in the hospital to starve her to death as a medical experiment - so planned to kidnap her and run away, still with the intravenous drip in my arm.

The question above breaks down to a baby being the occupant of the photo clue of a cot - the past tense of what wind does (blow) is blew, and a homophone for "blew" is "blue", with the plural of that being "blues". This one was a bit tricky so I hope you got it.

Answer: Apples and Oranges

"Apples and oranges" is a fairly modern saying that means comparing or contrasting two vastly different things/concepts/ideas/anything so completely different in nature, makes the comparison invalid. They're so unlike from one another that there is no common denominator at all. Comparing the merits of ballerinas or rugby league footballers, for example, or trying to find the best viewing experience of a heavy historical program created for university professors, against a Homer Simpson cartoon designed for children.

The question above breaks down to apples being described as "red, crunchy pomes" - a common conjunction is "and" - and the photo clue is of a pile of oranges.

Answer: Blue blood

If anyone is described as being a "blue blood" or "blue-blooded", this is an indication that that person is a member of the nobility or royalty. The original meaning of this saying is extremely racist in nature, whereby the proudest and most noble Spanish families were classed as such because they had never intermarried with Moors, Jews, or people from what were considered to be inferior races. Pooh-pooh to them, but that's how life was back then. Another reason behind this erroneous blue blood belief was that because the skin of the noble families was so fair, their veins were clearly visible, particularly so on their hands and wrists, far more so than darker skinned people. Because those veins were blue, it was thought the blood contained within was also that colour. Surely they weren't that gullible back then?

The question above breaks down to the fact that when somebody is feeling depressed, they are often described as feeling "blue" - and the photo clue is most definitely a drop of very red, very normal blood.

Answer: Have a green thumb

Anyone described as having a green thumb, or who has a green thumb is an indication that that person probably has a very beautiful garden and seems to have the ability to make anything grow. This expression is thought to have originated in the first half of the 1900s and described enthusiastic gardeners whose hands were usually stained from working with soil and plants. My mother had a green thumb, and could coax any plant to life, as did her mother and several of my brothers and sisters. All their gardens were, and are, exquisite.

The question above breaks down to "possess" being a synonym for "have" or "has" - the word "a" is often described as the "indefinite article" - green is the colour associated with jealousy - and the photo clue is of a rather creepy looking thumb. Did you know that an experienced palmist can tells a person's character just by studying the thumb of that person?

Answer: Jet black

"Jet black" is a description commonly applied to the colour of hair, but can of course be used to describe the colour of other objects as well. It is a very deep colour of black. It seems odd to think that black, the ultimate in dark colours, could have varying degrees of black applied to it, but this is indeed the case. You have coal black, ebony black, jet black, soot black and so on. Jet itself is a semi-precious deep, glossy black stone that is actually fossilised wood, very popular in jewellery at one stage. A written reference to its shade dates back at least to 1425 to John Lydgate's poem "Troyyes Book" (about ancient Troy), in which he writes of the stone that "It cometh out of Ethiope and Ynde, Blak as is get".

The question above breaks down to the photo clue being of a jet plane - and that old rock and roll singer, Johnny Cash, being referred to as "The Man in Black", because he usually favoured clothing of that colour when performing.