The 'F' Words Trivia Quiz

Answer: Search

Fossicking has come to mean lookng for gold or other precious items, particularly on the surface of previously worked over sites. The derivation usually given is from an English expression meaning 'to ferret out' meaning to elicit information from which the wider meaning of searching for something has become common usage.

Answer: Unruly

If you are described as fractious it means you are quarrelsome and argumentative. It was derived from fraction, which now is used only in the sense of being a part of something or a remnant of something broken. In the very early part of the sixteenth century it meant discord and although this meaning has disappeared in modern times, the derived word of fractious still exists.

Answer: An underskirt

The garment, and the name, originated in Spain. Farthingales were first worn in Spain in the fifteenth century before spreading to other parts of western Europe, notably England and France, in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. Its purpose was to provide a framework over which the dress fitted - later versions were named crinolines.

The Spanish name was verdugado, which became corrupted into farthingale in English.

Answer: A type of kilt

This is an alternative name for the pleated skirt worn by the Highlanders in Scotland and commonly called a kilt in English. The word is derived directly from Gaelic - fēileadhbeag is the Gaelic name and has two parts. Fēileadh means kilt while beag means small, so a filibeg is a small kilt.

Answer: Sugary paste or icing

The name is derived from the Latin word fundere, meaning to pour out, but came into English from the French - fondre, meaning to melt, became fondant in French and the word transferred to English unchanged. Fondant icing is made from powdered sugar and water with the addition, sometimes, of gelatin as a stabiliser and colourings.

The resultant mixture forms a firm paste that can be used to cover cakes completely - if you're skilled enough to handle it.

Answer: A light scarf

A fichu is meant to be worn indoors, often over a low cut dress, to provide some extra coverage for the woman wearing it. Many are made from lace, but they can also be created from cotton or silk. They were particularly popular in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.

Although the scarf appears to have originated in England, the word comes from the French language and means 'thrown on'.

Answer: Glazed pottery

The word describes a fine and highly coloured type of pottery. The word, as you'd expect from its spelling, came into English from French and is believed to derive from the French name for an Italian city, Faenza, which was renowned for its pottery production. It has been used in English since the early eighteenth century.

Answer: Sailing vessel

A felucca is a traditional sailing boat used in some parts of the Mediterranean Sea and on the river Nile. The boats are built from wood and have either one or two triangular sails. In modern times they are mostly used to transport tourists. The usual explanation given for the name is that it is a corruption of the Greek word epholkion, which means a small boat.

Answer: A boost

Originally, the word fillip referred to the release of a finger held by the thumb to straighten it. This could be to propel something or even to cause pain. This meaning dates from the sixteenth century in English and it seems to have mutated into meaning any type of stimulus or a boost in someone's state of mind.

Answer: A dissenting group

The roots of this word lie in the Latin 'facere', meaning to do or make. It passed into English via French by the early sixteenth century by which time it was used to refer to a group which disagrees with the majority view. It is often used in the area of politics, where disagreement is commonplace.