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Quiz about More Interesting Word Origins

More Interesting Word Origins Trivia Quiz

Here are some more word origins that you may find interesting.

A multiple-choice quiz by robert362. Estimated time: 4 mins.

Author
robert362

Time
4 mins

Type
Multiple Choice

Quiz #
32,824

Updated
Dec 03 21

# Qns
10

Difficulty
Average

Avg Score
6 / 10

Plays
2775

One at a Time - Single Page - Timed Game

Question 1 of 10

1. Many people know that Levi jeans are named after the merchant, Levi Strauss. How did he popularize his product? Hint

With early colonial settlers

With prospectors, during the California Gold Rush

With soldiers during the American Revolution

With soldiers during the Civil War

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Question 2 of 10

2. Many people are likened to 'Falstaff', one of Shakespeare's better known characters. In which of these plays does he appear? Hint

The Tempest

Henry IV, Parts I and II

Taming of the Shrew

Midsummer Night's Dream

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Question 3 of 10

3. We sometimes speak of things that are done 'according to Hoyle'. In what area was Hoyle an expert? Hint

Politics

Boxing

Cards

Fashion

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Question 4 of 10

4. A 'malapropism' is a word that derives from the literary character of Mrs. Malaprop. Who is the author that created this character? Hint

Oscar Wilde

Thomas Kyd

Oliver Goldsmith

Richard Brinsley Sheridan

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Question 5 of 10

5. How did Alzheimer's Disease get its name? Hint

It's named after the hospital where the first diagnoses and treatments were made.

It's named after an early victim of the disease

It's named after the doctor who described the condition

It's named after the region in which the condition was first described

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Question 6 of 10

6. Which of these figures is NOT a literary creation? Hint

Guy Fawkes

Sherlock Holmes

Walter Mitty

Tarzan

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Question 7 of 10

7. Which of these common words and phrases owes its origin to an American Indian name? Hint

Thespian

Jekyll-and- Hyde

Macadamia Nuts

Tammany Hall

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Question 8 of 10

8. Which of these characters is NOT a mythological creation? Hint

Tantalus

Pandora

Sisyphus

Pompadour

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Question 9 of 10

9. 'Casanova' and 'Lothario' are commonly used to describe great lovers. Were they real - or fictional? Hint

Both were real

Casanova was real; Lothario was fictional

Both were fictional

Lothario was real; Casanova was fictional

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Question 10 of 10

10. The item known as 'knickers' is a shortened form of the word 'knickerbockers'. Which author used this word as a pen name? Hint

Washington Irving

Mark Twain

Jack London

James Fenimore Cooper

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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. Many people know that Levi jeans are named after the merchant, Levi Strauss. How did he popularize his product?

Answer: With prospectors, during the California Gold Rush

It was during the Gold Rush of the 1840s and 1850s that Levi delivered the goods.

2. Many people are likened to 'Falstaff', one of Shakespeare's better known characters. In which of these plays does he appear?

Answer: Henry IV, Parts I and II

This is one of Shakespeare's best known characters and is widely recognized a literary 'type' and has given rise to the adjective "Falstaffian" - overweight, self-indulgent and given to bragging. He also appears in the "Merry Wives of Windsor".

3. We sometimes speak of things that are done 'according to Hoyle'. In what area was Hoyle an expert?

Answer: Cards

He wrote books on the subject. The boxing expert was the Marquis of Queensberry.

4. A 'malapropism' is a word that derives from the literary character of Mrs. Malaprop. Who is the author that created this character?

Answer: Richard Brinsley Sheridan

From one of his plays, 'The Rivals'.

5. How did Alzheimer's Disease get its name?

Answer: It's named after the doctor who described the condition

Dr Alzheimer, early in the 20th century.

6. Which of these figures is NOT a literary creation?

Answer: Guy Fawkes

Guy Fawkes conspired against the Crown - and paid for it dearly. There is a Guy Fawkes Day in England. Mitty comes from Thurber, Sherlock Holmes was created by Arthur Conan Doyle, and Tarzan was created by Edgar Rice Burroughs.

7. Which of these common words and phrases owes its origin to an American Indian name?

Answer: Tammany Hall

Tammany - and it has different spellings - was an Indian chief. Macadamia is derived from a chap named Macadam, and Jekyll and Hyde from R.L. Stevenson.

[Cymruambyth has added:

Thespian can be found in literature, it actually derives from two sources - one is Thespis of Icaria (c
600 BCE), traditionally held to be the father of Greek tragedy - which is why actors are referred to as thespians - and the second is the town of Thespia, a town at the foot of Mount Helikon in Greece, where there was a shrine to the Muses].

8. Which of these characters is NOT a mythological creation?

Answer: Pompadour

Madame Pompadour was a French aristocrat. Tantalus gives us 'tantalize', Camus wrote about the myth of Sisyphus, and 'Pandora's Box' is a familiar story.

9. 'Casanova' and 'Lothario' are commonly used to describe great lovers. Were they real - or fictional?

Answer: Casanova was real; Lothario was fictional

Don't ask me about Don Juan

10. The item known as 'knickers' is a shortened form of the word 'knickerbockers'. Which author used this word as a pen name?

Answer: Washington Irving

'History of New York' by Diedrich Knickerbocker.

Source: Author robert362

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor gtho4 before going online.
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