| 1 |
Neologogenesis: Words That Don't Exist, But Could 
| The words which are the subject of this quiz don't appear in any dictionary, and have never appeared in print until now. But each nevertheless has a clear meaning, dictated by etymological and other word-formation principles. |
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Very Difficult
10 qns |
4701 plays |
May 29 02 |
xaosdog
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| 2 |
Words Derived from Falconry Terms  
| The ancient sport of falconry has added many words to our vocabulary. Can you recognize some of them? |
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Tough
10 qns |
414 plays |
Feb 12 07 |
crisw
 |
| 3 |
Nerdy Words For Wordy Nerds  
| After a tough day of train spotting, sucking seer and biting the heads off of chickens, it might be nice to settle down, hang up your anorak and play with words. |
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Difficult
10 qns |
1185 plays |
Sep 04 07 |
uglybird
 |
| 4 |
Goat Words  
| A surprising number of English words and phrases are derived from words having to do with goats. How many do you know? |
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Tough
20 qns |
1362 plays |
Jan 04 02 |
crisw
 |
| 5 |
Interesting Origins of Food-Related Words  
| Everybody eats, but few people bother to think about how what they are ingesting got its name. This quiz takes a look at some delightful delectables, and how they were named. |
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Difficult
15 qns |
948 plays |
Nov 23 04 |
jgiles
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| 6 |
Daffy Derivations  
| The English language contains an abundant supply of words that communicate impaired sanity or intellect. Can you connect some of these "dotty" words to their origins? I'll supply information regarding origin and usage, and you can guess the word. |
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Tough
10 qns |
1245 plays |
May 24 04 |
uglybird
 |
| 7 |
Where Everyday Phrases Come From  
| We use these in our everyday speech. See if you can identify their origins. |
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Difficult
10 qns |
1335 plays |
Sep 10 07 |
simjazzbeer
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| 8 |
'Body Language'  
| Tests your knowledge of words etymologically derived from anatomical roots. xaosdog (xaosdog.com) attests that each word appearing in this quiz has been accepted as a legitimate English word by at least one major dictionary AND one minor dictionary. |
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Tough
10 qns |
1752 plays |
Nov 21 01 |
xaosdog
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| 9 |
Veg-Etymology: Linguistic Roots Exposed  
| Sink your teeth into this succulent assemblage of herbal verbiage as we burrow into the fertile soil of the linguistic origins of vegetable names. You will find that a few hints have been planted to assist you. |
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Tough
10 qns |
855 plays |
Nov 30 04 |
uglybird
 |
| 10 |
Where'd it come from?  
| Many of the everyday words and phrases we use have interesting origins. Here a a few that may be of interest. |
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Average
10 qns |
1449 plays |
Jan 24 08 |
Richicago
 |
| 11 |
The Quirkiness of the English Language  
| The English language is a hotchpotch of foreign words. This quiz is about the origin of words in everyday English usage. |
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Tough
15 qns |
1182 plays |
Jan 24 04 |
sunfloweruk23
|
| 12 |
Word Origins from Around the World  
| Words in common usage today derive from sources the world over. Do you know which words come from the source word with which I will provide you? Good luck - all is not as it appears! |
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Difficult
10 qns |
1296 plays |
Dec 02 06 |
alliefarrell
|
| 13 |
Green Invasion  
| A number of terms derived from (or giving rise to) words meaning ?green? are in common use. How many of them can you recognize? |
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Tough
10 qns |
513 plays |
Dec 14 08 |
looney_tunes
 |
| 14 |
Odd One Out 
| In this quiz three of four options concern words that are etymologically related via Latin or Greek. Find the one that is not.- Questions may include AE orthography. |
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Tough
10 qns |
1359 plays |
Sep 19 02 |
flem-ish
|
| 15 |
An Etymological Smorgasbord 
| Are you a word lover? Here are a diverse group of questions relating to word origins. |
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Difficult
10 qns |
1014 plays |
Jun 01 04 |
uglybird
 |
| 16 |
Word and name origins 
| Many words and names have pretty banal origins, hopefully here are some that will make you say 'Oh really?'. There is a slightly anatomical bias to many of the questions. British based. |
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Very Difficult
10 qns |
828 plays |
Jul 10 07 |
satguru
 |
| 17 |
Phrases, Myths and Ancient History 
| Myths have made their way into our language in so many ways. The following involve some common idioms which relate to myths and a little bit of history... |
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Difficult
10 qns |
1002 plays |
Feb 02 04 |
alkmene
|
| 18 |
"Alfresco" English: Words From The Out of Doors 
| Foreign words ("foreign" originating from the Latin "foris", meaning "out of doors") are generally welcomed warmly into the English language. This quiz will test your knowledge of some of our adopted words. |
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Average
10 qns |
738 plays |
Jun 10 04 |
uglybird
 |
| 19 |
And Now, a Few Words From Our Guild 
| Welcome to Guilder's World of Words, where you can find all kinds of words to suit all your vocabulary needs! We have some wonderful specials here at the World of Words. This week's specials are: |
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Tough
10 qns |
351 plays |
Jun 30 06 |
ertrum
 |
| 20 |
Ancient Word Origins
| Understanding the word origins may give us a better and deeper insight of the terms we use daily. |
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Average
10 qns |
2292 plays |
Sep 02 02 |
thejazzkickazz
 |
| 21 |
Word Origins 
| Etymology is like linguistic archeology. You dig into
words and you discover earlier forms, meanings, etc. Have a try with these - occasionally surprising - word origins. |
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Tough
10 qns |
2592 plays |
Sep 02 02 |
flem-ish
|
| 22 |
Etymological Tidbits 
| By looking at faces you often recognize family features. Something similar is true about words. Try your luck. |
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Average
10 qns |
2028 plays |
Sep 21 02 |
flem-ish
|
| 23 |
Where Did That Word Come From? 
| Most English words come from Latin or 'Old English'. Here are some that don't. But where DID they come from? |
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Average
15 qns |
1212 plays |
Apr 26 03 |
Baloo55th
 |
| 24 |
Origins Of First Names 
| Many English names happen to be foreign names in disguise. This quiz deals with the meaning and origins of names that were borrowed from Hebrew, Latin, Greek, Scandinavian and a few other languages. |
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Difficult
10 qns |
801 plays |
Jan 21 04 |
flem-ish
|
| 25 |
Son of Origins of Words and Phrases 
| More strange origins of familiar words and phrases. |
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Difficult
10 qns |
1746 plays |
May 23 00 |
vendome
|
| 26 |
Word Origins 
| This is a quiz about some obscure origins of words in the English language. Enjoy! |
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Tough
10 qns |
741 plays |
Apr 01 03 |
fuadj
|
| 27 |
What 's In A Word ? 
| There often is more in a word or name than meets the eye. Understanding the background and origin of a word helps us to know what we are talking about. Have a try. |
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Difficult
10 qns |
873 plays |
Apr 18 02 |
flem-ish
|
| 28 |
True Word Origins 
| Have you ever wondered where some words originated? Here are ten possible sources for useful words in the English language...enjoy! |
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Tough
10 qns |
1299 plays |
Dec 31 01 |
thejazzkickazz
 |
| 29 |
Word Links 
| We often are blind to the historic links there are between words. This quiz points out some such 'unexpected' relations between words. |
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Average
10 qns |
1020 plays |
Mar 28 02 |
flem-ish
|
| 30 |
Surprising Words and Word-Origins
| If you take a second look at a word you often are in for a surprising link with another one. See if you can find the 'hidden origins' of some common and less common English words. |
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Tough
10 qns |
711 plays |
Nov 22 01 |
flem-ish
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