People Who Became Words - 6 Trivia Quiz

Answer: The Merchant of Venice

Shakespeare's play 'The Merchant of Venice' features a moneylender named Shylock. When a merchant, Antonio, wants a loan from Shylock, he puts a condition that if Antonio fails to repay the loan, then Antonio has to give him a pound of his flesh. Thus, Shylock is a word which refers to a ruthless moneylender or a loan shark who charges exorbitant interest for lending money. Also the phrase 'pound of flesh', (which means a debt which is ruthlessly extracted), has its origins from this play.

Answer: Romeo Montague

Romeo Montague and Juliet Capulet were the two famous lovers from William Shakespeare's play 'Romeo and Juliet'. The character of Romeo has become so famous that the term is used in the English language to refer to a lover.

Answer: Daniel Defoe

Daniel Defoe's famous novel 'Robinson Crusoe' featured a principal character called Robinson Crusoe, who is shipwrecked on an island. On the island, he finds a native who becomes his man servant. Since he finds him on a Friday, he calls him Friday. The term 'Man Friday' is thus used to refer to a faithful manservant.

Answer: From the name of a Greek hero, Heracles

Hercules was the Roman name for the mythological hero who was originally called Heracles (or Herakles) by the Greeks. He is given twelve tasks to be carried out, by his enemy Eurystheus. These tasks are known as the Labours of Hercules. The adventures and heroics of Hercules resulted in the word 'Herculean' being added to the dictionary.

The word Herculean thus refers to anything that is difficult, impossible or extraordinary.

Answer: Frankenstein was the name of the monster in the novel

'Frankenstein' was a famous novel written by Mary Shelley. The central character of the novel is Victor Frankenstein, who tries to create a human being. But his creation goes awry and the result is a monster that causes many deaths. At the end of the tale, a disillusioned Frankenstein dies and the monster also decides to commit suicide and jumps off a ship.

A common myth is that Frankenstein was the name of the monster, which is not correct. The word Frankenstein thus refers to something that turns against its creator or a creation that goes awry.

Answer: From the name of a fictional giant

The word Gargantuan is used to refer to any thing that is huge, as in 'gargantuan appetite' or 'gargantuan proportions'. The word has its origins in the name of a fictional giant called Gargantua. This giant was benevolent in nature and was known for its voracious appetite. This fictional character was popularised by the French writer Francois Rabelais.

Answer: From the name of a Greek deity

In Greek mythology, Atlas was a Titan (a powerful Greek deity) who was cursed by Zeus to carry the heavens on his back. Atlas is depicted as carrying the Earth (a globe) on his shoulders. The word Atlas is thus believed to have originated from the Greek God Atlas.

There is another legend which says that Atlas was a King and astronomer who created the first globe. But the legend of the Greek Atlas is more popular and credited as the source of the word.

Answer: Charles Dickens

The character Ebenezer Scrooge appears in Charles Dickens' famous book 'A Christmas Carol'. The character is a tight-fisted miser who is selfish in nature. The popularity of the book resulted in the word Scrooge being used to refer to a miser. Incidentally, the Walt Disney character Scrooge McDuck (uncle of Donald Duck) is also depicted as a miser.

The character however was not created by Disney himself, but by Carl Banks.

Answer: Tantalise

In Greek mythology, Tantalus was depicted as a person who committed so many sins that he was punished by making him stand in a pool of water with a fruit tree above him. Whenever he tried to pluck the fruit, the branch would move up and when he bent down to drink water, the water level would recede. Thus, Tantalus was being tempted with food and drink but could never get it.

The word tantalize, (which means tempt, tease or entice) is derived from the name of Tantalus.

Answer: Blurb

Gelett Burgess, an American humorist created a fictional character named Belinda Blurb. From the name of this character, the word blurb was derived. The character was created to make fun of the way publishers praised authors on the cover of the book. In book publishing, a blurb is a brief summary or words of praise about the book which is usually printed on the back of the book.