Don't Jargogle Your Mind Trivia Quiz

Answer: Appetency

The word originated in the early 17th century and comes from the Latin 'appetentia' and 'appetere' meaning 'seek after'. In a sentence, appetency could be used in place of yearning or craving. One could have an appetency for chocolate.

Answer: Tweeny

From the late 19th century, this obsolete British word is still used informally today. Both the archaic and modern informal terms are derived from the word 'between'. The modern informal term refers to children between the age of eight and fourteen.

Answer: Whilom

The word comes from the Old English 'hwīlum' meaning 'at times' and is related to Old High German 'hwīlōm'. One of the better synonyms for whilom, is the word erstwhile. Both are beautiful sounding words, but whilom needs to make a comeback.

Answer: Timbrel

Another name for the timbrel is tabret. According to the "American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition", the word was taken from the Middle English 'timbre' meaning 'drum'. However, there are multiple references in the Bible starting in Exodus 15:20, "And Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took a timbrel in her hand; and all the women went out after her with timbrels and with dances" all the way to Psalms 150:4 "Praise him with the timbrel and dance: praise him with stringed instruments and organs".

Answer: Slugabed

Slugabed is actually a portmanteau, made up of 'sluggard' and 'abed'. It is a wonderful word for an idler, loafer or layabout. According to the "Oxford Dictionary" the word came into use in the late 16th century.

Answer: Scot

Scot has multiple meanings, the most obvious being someone of Scottish ancestry. The meaning "assessment or tax" comes from Late Old English, from Old Norse 'skot' meaning 'a shot'. This is where the term scot-free comes from.

Taken from the "Oxford Dictionary":

"Scot-free arose in the 16th century as an alteration of the earlier term shot-free. It probably originated in the sense 'not required to pay a scot (tax or fee)' or 'free of charge', as in this example from 1792: 'Scot-free the Poets drank and ate; They paid no taxes to the State!' (John Wolcot, Odes of Condolence). This meaning is no longer common, but it seems to have been used as late as 1921, in hearings before the US Senate Committee on Finance: 'The common laborer does not know that that act [on taxation] was passed. He is scot free at 40 cents an hour'."

Answer: Saturnism

Mid 19th century alchemists associated lead with the planet Saturn. The symbol for lead was used to represent Saturn too. Lead is toxic to all living things and lead poisoning can lead to a number of different conditions, not least of all intellectual disability. In 2013, lead poisoning is believed to have caused almost 900,000 deaths. It is also known as plumbism, which is taken from the Latin 'plumbum' which simply means 'lead'.

Answer: Purfle

A purfle is not only found on garments, but also furniture and even a violin. In actual fact, any inlaid border on a musical instrument is referred to as a purfle. It can also be referred to as purfling. The word comes from Latin, 'pro-' and 'filum' meaning 'thread'. The 'Urban Dictionary' states that something which is pretty, beautiful and purple is referred to as 'purfle' too.

Answer: Periapt

Originally taken from the Greek 'peri-' and 'haptos' meaning 'clasped' an adjective of 'haptein' meaning 'to fasten'. The word is used fairly often still in modern times, however it is predominantly used in games like Dungeons and Dragons, Maze of the Minotaur and World of Warcraft.

Answer: Malison

Taken from the Old French 'malison', it originates from the Latin 'maledicto' which is made up of 'male' meaning wickedly' and 'dicto' meaning 'say,speak'. New parents are advised to be mindful of their handwriting when completing the names of their progeny on birth certificates as the name Madison, could quickly become Malison.