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An Etymological Smorgasbord Trivia Quiz

Are you a word lover? Here are a diverse group of questions relating to word origins.

A multiple-choice quiz by uglybird. Estimated time: 6 mins.

Author
uglybird

Time
6 mins

Type
Multiple Choice

Quiz #
181,357

Updated
Jul 21 22

# Qns
10

Difficulty
Difficult

Avg Score
5 / 10

Plays
1405

Awards
Top 35% Quiz

One at a Time - Single Page - Timed Game

Question 1 of 10

1. I'm the kind of person who is excited on learning that different words share the same origin. All but one of the following words comes from the Latin root "caput", which means "head". Which one doesn't? Hint

Capital

Chattel

Cattle

Chateau

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Question 2 of 10

2. I'm amazed that some authors have the audacity to simply make up new words. Friedrich Nietzsche is credited with coining the German word that, translated into English, became "superman". However, other translations were possible, such as "overman". Who is generally given credit for establishing "superman" as an English term? Hint

Oscar Wilde

George Bernard Shaw

Hank Stram

Winston Churchill

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Question 3 of 10

3. The word "coquette", which in English designates a flirtatious woman, derives from French for which animal? (Hint: There may be some gender confusion here.) Hint

A trumpeting swan

A preening peacock

A strutting cock

A croaking frog

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Question 4 of 10

4. Some words with somewhat different meanings share common roots. Other words with more similar meanings may have different antecedents. Which of the following word pairs do not have a common derivation? Hint

Posit and postulate

Coy and quiet

Catch and chase

Disc and dais

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Question 5 of 10

5. Sometimes words are coined, but in other instances words seem to evolve. Which of the following words may have contributed to the etymology of the word "penthouse"? Hint

The Old French "apendre" meaning "to belong"

The Middle English word "pentace" designating a shed attached to another building

All of them

The Medieval Latin "appendere" meaning "to hang"

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Question 6 of 10

6. Knowing the origin of a word often greatly increases my interest in it as well as my desire to use it. Which of these words comes from a Latin compound word meaning "detrimental to faith"? (Hint: There is a fragment of "faith" in one of these words.) Hint

Perfidious

Deceitful

Treacherous

Punic

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Question 7 of 10

7. Learning the etymology of a word may change my perspective on a word's meaning (as it did in the case of the word "diatribe".) Which of the following most nearly captures one of the meanings of the Greek word from which the word "diatribe" originates? Hint

To brutally attack

To pummel, using both hands

To cause suffering

To wear away by rubbing

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Question 8 of 10

8. Which of the following words does not share a common root? (Hint: One of these words should "appear" different.) Hint

Expectorate

Expect

Specter

All have the same root

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Question 9 of 10

9. Wondering where the word "croquet" came from started me collecting the information for this quiz. To which of the following objects did the Old North French word from which the word "croquet" was derived refer? Hint

A hooked needle

A bow of ribbon on a woman's hat

A hockey stick

A shepherd's crook

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Question 10 of 10

10. Sometimes I can make no sense out of the purported origin of a word. The word "taco" is said to have evolved from an American Spanish term. Which of the following was an original meaning for the term, according to the American Heritage Dictionary? Hint

A wad of bank notes

A variety of Mayan bread

A porcelain plate

An Aztec ceremonial disc

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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

Answer: Chateau

The words "capital", "chattel" and "cattle" all ultimately derive from the Latin "caput", meaning "head". "Caput" can refer to the top or "capital" of a column. The Latin word from which "chateau" originated, "castellum", referred to a castle or fort.

Answer: George Bernard Shaw

George Bernard Shaw published his satirical play, "Man and Superman" in 1903 and is held to have, thereby, assured "superman" a place in the English language. Oscar Wilde was a satirical writer from roughly the same time period. Hank Stram is credited with coining the term "Super Bowl" not "superman". Winston Churchill gave us "the iron curtain."

3. The word "coquette", which in English designates a flirtatious woman, derives from French for which animal? (Hint: There may be some gender confusion here.)

Answer: A strutting cock

The word "coquette" is a feminine term obtained from the masculine "coquet", which referred to a strutting cock. The masculine word has largely fallen out of use.

Answer: Posit and postulate

"Postulate" comes from a Latin word meaning "to request." "Posit", despite having an English meaning similar to "postulate", originates from a Latin root designating "place" and is related to the word "position". The Latin "captare" ultimately underlies the etymology of both "catch" and "chase". "Coy" and "quiet" both derive from the Latin "quietus".

The Latin "discus" is the ultimate antecedent for both "dais" and "disc".

5. Sometimes words are coined, but in other instances words seem to evolve. Which of the following words may have contributed to the etymology of the word "penthouse"?

Answer: All of them

The final step in the evolution of "penthouse" is thought to involve "pentace" being misheard and/or mispronounced to finally yield "penthouse".

Answer: Perfidious

The Latin "fide", connoting fidelity or faithfulness, combines with the prefix "per" (used in the sense of working against) to give us "perfidious". "Treacherous" may have its roots in the French "triche", meaning "trick". "Deceive" is nearly transliterated from Old French. "Punic" refers to the treacherous behavior of the Carthaginians during the Punic wars, but is not a compound word.

Answer: To wear away by rubbing

A "tribulum" was an instrument used to scrape dirt off skin. Similarly, "diatribe" refers to wearing away by rubbing. Even in Greek times, the word could refer to a lengthy, learned discourse. The current use of the word seems to be sharper than either sense of the original Greek term, but I also see how a "diatribe" can "wear down" the listener.

8. Which of the following words does not share a common root? (Hint: One of these words should "appear" different.)

Answer: Expectorate

Both "specter" and "expect" (ekspect) incorporate the root "spect", from the Latin spectrum meaning "appearance". "Expectorate" means "to blow out of the chest", "pectus" being the Latin word for breast.

Answer: A shepherd's crook

"Crochet" owes its origin to a slightly different Old French word. In the French language, the Old French word for a shepherd's crook did develop into a term for a hockey stick. "Coquille" is the word for a type of hat ribbon.

Answer: A wad of bank notes

Other suggestions for the origin of the term "taco" can be found, including the suggestion that "taco" was derived from a Spanish word meaning "to attack".

Source: Author uglybird

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