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Sesquipedalius' D Words Trivia Quiz

Uncle Sesquipedalius, who loves to impress others with his vocabulary, has posed numerous single questions in the New Question Game. He has a superfluity of highfalutin' words beginning with the letter D. How many of them can you sort?

A multiple-choice quiz by FatherSteve. Estimated time: 5 mins.

Author
FatherSteve

Time
5 mins

Type
Multiple Choice

Quiz #
408,727

Updated
Aug 17 24

# Qns
10

Difficulty
Average

Avg Score
8 / 10

Plays
275

Awards
Top 35% Quiz

One at a Time - Single Page - Timed Game

Question 1 of 10

1. When Rocket J. Squirrel and Bullwinkle J. Moose partnered to thwart the evil designs of Boris Badunov, Natasha Fatale and Fearless Leader, they were described by the announcer as "our dauntless heroes." What does "dauntless" mean? Hint

without any assistance

fearless, with bravado

reckless, negligent

not very smart, clueless

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Question 2 of 10

2. In "Tarzan and the Jewels of Opar" (1916), Edgar Rice Burroughs wrote "Tarzan had almost reached the point where the trail debouched upon the open river bottom." What does "debouche" mean? Hint

to submerge, to sink into

to overlook, to be higher than

to lead out of and into something

to command, to hold the superior site

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Question 3 of 10

3. Between the human brain and spinal cord, two bunches of connecting fibres compose the medulla oblongata, from which tracts (called the pyramidal tracts) decussate at the caudal end. In this context, what does "decussate" mean? Hint

to hook up, connect

pass through bony structure

merge, combine, join

to cross over each other

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Question 4 of 10

4. Thomm Quackenbush wrote, in "Holidays with Bigfoot" (2020), "The heat of Vegas desiccates the unwary." What does "desiccate" mean?
Hint

to cause one to become reckless

to intoxicate, to make light headed

to take all of one's money

to dry out

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Question 5 of 10

5. In Chapter 3 of Jane Austen's "Sense and Sensibility", she describes Edward Ferrars: "He was too diffident to do justice to himself; but when his natural shyness was overcome, his behaviour gave every indication of an open, affectionate heart." What does "diffident" mean? Hint

argumentative, hard to get along with

antisocial, uncomfortable in society

timid, not self assured

unlike most other people

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Question 6 of 10

6. In Shakespeare's "The Taming of the Shrew" (Act II, s. 1), Baptista says to Petruchio, "Well, go with me, and be not so discomfited." What does "discomfit" mean? Hint

feeling out of place

disconcerted, upset

hemmed in, hard pressed

like being boiled in oil

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Question 7 of 10

7. Title VI of the US Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits employers from discriminating based on race, color, religion, sex or national origin. This includes both disparate treatment and disparate impact. What does disparate mean? Hint

based on one's father

cut in two, as with a knife

intended to create hopelessness

different, distinct, dissimilar

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Question 8 of 10

8. The casting director was enchanted by her hair, her curves and especially by her diphthong. Which part did he like best?
Hint

the patrician look of her nostrils

her scanty swim-suit bottom

her complex vowel sounds

her hypnotic eyes

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Question 9 of 10

9. A dolman is a Turkish outer robe. A dolman is also a woman's garment with cape-like sleeves. The Dohlman Procedure is a method for correcting an esophageal diverticulum to improve swallowing. What is a dolmen? Hint

a female noblewoman, a princess

rice and meat wrapped in leaves

a knob by which a drawer is pulled

a prehistoric megalithic tomb

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Question 10 of 10

10. Upon his death on 3 April 2021, Jock MacVicar was called "The Doyen of Scottish Golf" in the sports press. What is a "doyen"?
Hint

a raconteur, an oral historian

an inventor, an innovator

a dean, a leader, a senior man

the winningest champion

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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

Answer: fearless, with bravado

The adjective dauntless means without fear, bold, brave, and unintimidated. It is not a popular usage; the reference in "Rocky and Bullwinkle" is tongue in cheek. The prefix "daunt-" derived (in about the 13th century) from the Old French "danter", meaning to fear.

The suffix "-less" is used to form words meaning without, absent, or free from. Dauntless has been used in English from the late 16th century.

2. In "Tarzan and the Jewels of Opar" (1916), Edgar Rice Burroughs wrote "Tarzan had almost reached the point where the trail debouched upon the open river bottom." What does "debouche" mean?

Answer: to lead out of and into something

The Modern English word "debouche" has two principal meanings: for an army to march out and for a river to empty into. From these meanings, the verb can mean to emerge from any small or narrow place into any wide or open space. The verb entered English from the French "d�boucher", which was built upon "bouche", which is the French word for mouth. Compare the Italian "sboccare".

Answer: to cross over each other

The adjective "decussate" describes a crossing and derives from the Roman numeral X - an uppercase X in Latin is called a "decussis". Decussate things are intersecting or crossed. In botany, decussate leaves are those arranged alternatively at right angles to each other. A Roman "decussis" was a bronze coin issued 215-212 BC with the letter X marked on it.

4. Thomm Quackenbush wrote, in "Holidays with Bigfoot" (2020), "The heat of Vegas desiccates the unwary." What does "desiccate" mean?

Answer: to dry out

The entire quote from Quackenbush's book is "The heat of Vegas desiccates the unwary, its dryness sapping moisture from one's mouth and eyes. Sweat evaporates too quickly to cool, its only evidence a dusting of salt on one's shirt. Las Vegas claims they are the sunniest, least humid state in the Union, which is boast-worthy to those not turning to tourist jerky." Desiccate means to dry out, to remove water from, to dehydrate, to preserve by evaporating moisture.

Answer: timid, not self assured

The meaning of "diffident" changed significantly over several centuries. The original Latin, from "diffidere", meant to distrust someone else. By the early 18th century, the English meaning was to distrust one's self, and the Latin meaning went away. In Modern English, the adjective "diffident" describes someone who is modest, reserved, uncertain, shy, without self-confidence, timid and unsure.

6. In Shakespeare's "The Taming of the Shrew" (Act II, s. 1), Baptista says to Petruchio, "Well, go with me, and be not so discomfited." What does "discomfit" mean?

Answer: disconcerted, upset

The verbs discomfit and discomfort are as frequently confused with one another as they are etymologically unrelated. "Discomfort" derives from two Latin terms which, when combined, mean to take away the strength ("fortis") of something or someone. "Discomfit" descends from a 13th-century Anglo-French term meaning to defeat utterly in battle. Over time, the term came to mean to frustrate or to thwart. It then grew to mean to disconcert.

Answer: different, distinct, dissimilar

Disparate is an adjective used to describe things which are different from each other, distinct in quality or kind, or highly dissimilar. In the context of employment discrimination, disparate treatment is intentional whereas disparate impact is a negative result on a protected group without evil intent. The Modern English term derives from the Latin "disparatus" which is the past participle of "disparare" meaning to divide, cut apart, sever or separate. In Latin "par" means equal and "dispar" means unequal.

8. The casting director was enchanted by her hair, her curves and especially by her diphthong. Which part did he like best?

Answer: her complex vowel sounds

A diphthong is an oral vowel sound which "glides" in the sense of moving from one vowel sound to another. Mechanically, this means that the mouth, tongue, teeth or lips begin in one position and end up in another. Auditorily, this means that the first vowel sound changes to the second vowel sound within the same syllable. The classic classroom example of this is the phrase "no highway cowboys" which is said to contain five separate diphthongs. The word comes from the Ancient Greek meaning two sounds.

Answer: a prehistoric megalithic tomb

A dolmen in a burial place constructed of two upright stones on edge and a capstone supported on top. Human remains have been placed in dolmen since before written history. When excavated, dolmen sometimes produce bones or artifacts which assist in dating. Most are early Neolithic.

10. Upon his death on 3 April 2021, Jock MacVicar was called "The Doyen of Scottish Golf" in the sports press. What is a "doyen"?

Answer: a dean, a leader, a senior man

From the early 15th century, "doyen" was an Old French noun referring to a commander of ten soldiers. The feminine form (from around 1905) is "doyenne" referring to a senior woman in a group or society. By analogy, the term has come to identify the senior member of any group, the dean of a society, a leading light, or a person who is an exemplar.

Source: Author FatherSteve

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