Pieces of Ate Trivia Quiz

Answer: Agate

Originating from the Greek word 'akhatēs', agate was named by the Greek philosopher Theophrastus and is usually volcanic in origin. Registering at 6-7 on the Mohs scale, it is suitable for making jewellery as well as tools such as a mortar and pestle.

Answer: Berate

The word berate is from the mid 16th century English 'be', meaning thoroughly, and 'rate', to scold. Some of its synonyms are rebuke or castigate. An antonym of berate is praise.

While at the park the other day, I heard a mother berate her children for chasing the birds.

Answer: Create

The word create stems from the Latin words 'creare' and 'creat', meaning produced, and is classified as late Middle English. Meaning to bring into existence or cause to happen, create is the antonym of destroy.

I wanted to create a portrait using watercolours, but the paint ran, so I had to use oils instead.

Answer: Debate

Originally from the Latin for 'dis' and 'baterre' meaning to fight, debate is a Middle English word derived from Old French. Debate, the noun, is a formal discussion in the sentence above, but can also be a verb. 'He continued to debate the point even though he was clearly wrong'. Antonyms of debate are agree or concur.

The politicians met for a debate before the election, but it developed into a debating match as both parties argued the point.

Answer: Elate

The modern word elate is derived from the Latin 'elat', meaning to raise. Archaic English had elate as an adjective, as in 'the student had an elated expression when she finished first in the exam'. The more modern parlance is to use the past tense verb, such as in 'the student was elated when she finished first in the exam'. The use of elate as a verb has steadily declined for the more favoured 'happy' or 'rapt'. Some antonyms are depressed or miserable.

Answer: Freight

The noun freight comes from the German 'vracht' meaning ship's cargo, which then developed into 'vrecht'. The English 'freight' also stems from Middle Dutch language and is a verb meaning to carry. In modern English the term freight encompasses any transport medium, such as trucks and planes, as well as ships and trains. Freight, when used as an adjective, generally refers to trains, while cargo is used to describe planes and ships.

The freight train carried the containers to the port where they were loaded onto a cargo ship.

Answer: Gait

Attributed to 14th century Scots, 'gate' meaning walking or path; 'gata' is 13th century Scandinavian for road or way. The Scottish noun 'gait' developed this spelling prior to 1750 and may be related to the German 'gasse' - a way or road. In modern parlance gait refers in particular to horses to describe the pattern and speed of their steps while walking or running, eg, walk, trot, canter, gallop.

The racehorse Winx had an unusual gait. Her stride was shorter and faster than the other horses, which allowed her to win so many races.

Answer: Hydrate

From the Greek 'hydor' comes the prefix 'hydro', meaning water. The term hydrate possibly came from the French chemist Joseph-Louis Proust around 1800 AD. He coined the noun for a compound containing water. It wasn't until possibly the 20th century that the modern version of the word, meaning 'to restore moisture', developed.

In the heat of the summer it is important to hydrate yourself, so I make sure to drink plenty of water.

Answer: Irate

The word irate comes from the Latin word 'iratus' (prefix ira), meaning angry. From the same source is the word 'irasi', which also means to become angry. It is from this word we get 'irascible' meaning short-tempered or irritable.

I become irate when my husband changes the television channel while I am watching a show. But he gets irritated and blames me for letting him fall asleep with the remote in his hand.

Answer: Jubilate

The word jubilate arises from the Latin word 'jubilat' which means to call out. Early Christian writers used the verb 'jubilare' for shout for joy. Jubilate appeared in print in the 17th century and it is still used in the Bible and other prose. The adjective 'jubilant' and the noun 'jubilation', or the more common synonym 'celebrate', are used today in modern speech and prose.

I was jubilant when I won the lotto, until I found out it was only a couple of dollars.

Answer: Kuwait

The name Kuwait is from the Arabic word 'al-kuwayt' and its diminutive 'kut', which means a fortress protected by water. Kuwait is a western Asian country whose capital is Kuwait City.

In 1990 the First Gulf War began after Iraq invaded Kuwait.

Answer: Locate

From the early Latin 'locus' meaning place to 'locat' for placed, in the 16th century 'locate' meant to establish in place. Locus is still used in the sciences, particularly in medical works and mathematics to establish a given point. In the latter part of the 19th century the word evolved to mean 'discover the position of'.

The video game Pokemon Go was all the rage recently and players would walk around trying to locate the various Pokemon creatures. It was annoying when you found someone looking under your car in the shopping centre, but at least they weren't standing in the middle of the road.

Answer: Mate

Mate is related to the Germanic 'mate', meaning comrade or 'gemate', meaning eating together. It is similar to the Dutch 'Maat' which means partner or colleague. This is where the different definitions of mate arise to mean a friend, a partner, an associate, a member of a ship's crew, or a mechanical joining.

On the TV show Gilligan's Island, Gilligan was the first mate as well as Skipper's friend.

Answer: Narrate

The Latin 'narrare' for knowing and its past tense 'narratus', meaning to tell or recount, gave rise to the word narrate.

The word narrate has evolved to mean to give a report, to tell a story, or to provide a commentary on an event. Morgan Freeman is well known for the timbre of his voice and is often called upon to narrate movies. He has become quite the voice-over man.

Answer: Ornate

The word ornate is derived from the Latin word 'ornatus', meaning adorn, furnish or embellish. The earliest use of ornate referred to a style of prose that was overly flowery and elaborate. The Latin 'ornare' is the root word for ornament and this is how ornate came to describe anything overly decorated.

Kings and Queens from centuries ago would wear ornate clothes as a mark of their status, unlike their workers who wore plain and simple clothing.

Answer: Palate

The term palate came from the Old French 'palat', but it is closer to the Latin 'palatum', meaning literally the roof of the mouth. In the 13th and 14th centuries it was thought that the taste buds or the sense of taste came from the roof of the mouth and this is how the word palatable (tasty) arose.

The palate is divided into the hard palate and the soft palate. The hard palate is toward the front of the roof of your mouth while the soft palate is toward the back.

Answer: Quadrate

The Latin root 'quad' means four and quadrate is a related to the Latin 'quadrum', which means to make square.

The quadrate bone in some birds and reptiles is part of the skull and is where the jaw attaches.

Answer: Rebate

The origins of the word rebate are in the Anglo-French 'rabattre', meaning to beat back or reduce. In this case it means to diminish an amount. Applied to government taxes or fees, a rebate is a small refund usually given if said fees are paid in time. I'm always happy to take advantage of that.

The French term 'rabbet' is also a recess in a piece of wood, usually to allow something to intersect. This meaning of rebate is a special cut to form a join between two surfaces, which is what the carpenter did when he was replacing my stairs.

Answer: Strait

The Latin 'strictus', meaning drawn tight, is the early root of the Old French 'estreit', meaning tight or narrow. This led to the English version of 'strait', which geographically refers to a narrow passage of water. The term straight and narrow in Old English was written strait and narrow, and this is the origin of strait-laced, strait-jacket, and dire straits of extreme difficulty.

My hubby and I were in dire straits once when the ferry across the Bass Strait broke down and we were in danger of missing our ship. Luckily a kind-hearted fisherman took us across and we boarded on time.

Answer: Trait

The word trait is from French via the Latin word 'tractus', for drawing, in particular a short line or stroke. Via the French, the short line then referred to a special way of drawing, or writing, as in a flourish in the stroke. That flourish was a personal way of writing that became a trait. The word evolved further to include any personal characteristic, a personal way of doing something or a personal feature.

When I was at school (back in the days before computers), I always did a fancy little figure-of-eight on my y and g, until the teacher told me to stop that trait because it made my work hard to read.

Answer: Update

Update is a modern word added to the English lexicon in the mid 20th century. Adding the word up (increase) to date (current) formed a compound word to mean inform or give additional information on a current situation. It not just means an update of data, it refers to updating material possessions that are outdated.

We recently updated our kitchen because it was very old and worn. Now it's sleek and shiny.

Answer: Vacate

The word vacate is from the Latin 'vacat', meaning left empty. Synonyms for vacate include abandon and withdraw, while antonyms are enforce and sanction.

When our cruise is over we need to vacate our cabin very early so the crew can get ready for the next load of passengers. That early wake-up on the last morning is the second-worst thing about a cruise. I think the worst thing is disembarking but my hubby disagrees. He thinks the worst thing is the other passengers.

Answer: Weight

The word weight is derived from the Germanic 'Gewicht' and the Dutch 'wicht', meaning to carry or move. Synonyms for weight include burden and heftiness, while antonyms are advantage and pleasure.

Your weight is determined by the amount of force gravity puts on your frame. The bigger the frame the bigger the force, ergo, the heavier your weight. Isn't it funny how gravity increases after Christmas?

Answer: Yokemate

The term yoke comes from the Germanic 'joch,' which is related to the Dutch 'jungere', which means to join. A yoke is a wooden harness attached to the necks of two animals, as well as the wagon or other farm equipment they were to pull.

The modern version of a yokemate is someone you work with, whose nose is at the same grindstone as yours.

Answer: Zonate

The term zonate comes from Latin's 'zona', meaning girdle. In science it is used to describe rings or stripes of colour or texture.

Agate is a zonate rock with areas of chalcedony alternating with quartz.