Upwords & Downwords XII Trivia Quiz

Answer: imprecate

'Imprecate' can also mean 'to utter obscenities' or 'blaspheme'. Milder, it can mean 'to express or verbalize' (e.g., "She imprecated her anger").

'Anathemize' means 'to wish harm or evil upon'.

Answer: imperate

Imperate acts are acts that are not involuntary, but have been commanded. The word derives from the Latin 'imperare', which means 'to command'.

Answer: primate

Humans are grouped into the Anthropoidea suborder of the order Primates, along with great apes, gibbons, Old World monkeys, and New World monkeys. The other two suborders, Prosimii and Tarsioidea, include lemurs and tarsiers, respectively.

Answer: armpit

Armpits are alternatively called underarms or axilla. They are also called oxters, most frequently in Northern England, Scotland, and Ireland. The armpits are one of four sites identified by medical professionals in which a thermometer may be inserted to measure body temperature. The other sites include the mouth, ear canal, and rectum.

Answer: prima

'Prima' typically means 'most important', and is often used in performance circles to refer to the leading role. A prima donna is the lead female vocalist in an operatic company and a prima ballerina is the lead dancer in a ballet company. 'Prima facie' is a legal term meaning 'self-evident', or 'at first glance'.

Answer: pram

'Pram' is the British equivalent of the American 'stroller'.

The word may also be used to refer to a flat-bottomed and snub-nosed barge-like boat, dinghy, or ferry.

Answer: mar

'Mar' is commonly used in the verb form, but it can also be used as a noun to refer to a mark or flaw.

Answer: Rm

Romans is more commonly abbreviated as 'Rom', and sometimes as 'Ro'.

Romans was an epistle written by Paul the Apostle, and addressed to the community of Christians in Rome. It is considered by many in Biblical scholarship circles to be his masterpiece. Joseph Augustine Fitzmyer, a New Testament scholar and priest of the Society of Jesus writes that "[Romans]...overwhelms the reader by the density and sublimity of the topic with which it deals, the gospel of the justification and salvation of Jew and Greek alike by the grace of God through faith in Jesus Christ, revealing the uprightness and love of God the father".

Answer: M

The numbers 1, 5, 10, 50, 100, 500, and 1000 are represented by the Roman numerals I, V, X, L, C, D, and M, respectively. Up to three smaller units of the I, X, and C type may be added on to count up (e.g. VI = 6, MCCC = 1300). Rather than add a fourth, a smaller unit is subtracted from the next unit type by placing it first (e.g. 40 = XL - not LXXXX, 900 = CM - not DCCCC). To achieve larger numbers, like 5000 and 1 million, an overscore is used to represent multiplication by 1000 (e.g. V overscored = 5000, M overscored = 1 million).

Answer: MA

Boston became known as the "Cradle of Liberty" for the foment there which sparked the Revolutionary War and culminated in American independence from great Britain.

Massachusetts ratified the new Constitution of the United States on February 6, 1888, making it the 6th state to be admitted to the Union.

Answer: AMP

Adenosine triphosphate (ATP) is the main energy-transfer molecule of the cell, transporting energy within the cell for metabolism. It is composed of the purine base (adenine), a pentose sugar (ribose), and three phosphate groups. The phosphate groups are released in a process called hydrolysis to yield adenosine diphosphate (ADP) and then adenosine monophosphate (AMP).

Answer: ramp

Ramp is a wild onion (Allium tricoccum) of the amaryllis family. It is also called wild leek, or ramson). It is native to the eastern part of North America, and features prominently in the cuisines of West Virginia and Quebec. Ramp is eaten raw or used as a flavoring agent in cooked foods. The flavor is commonly described as a combination of onion and strong garlic.

Answer: Priam

Priam was the King of Troy who was killed when his city was sacked by the Greeks at the end of the Trojan War. He was father to Paris, Cassandra, Hector, and many others. Paris incited the wrath of the Greeks when he spirited the lovely Helen away from Menelaus, the King of Sparta, and returned with her to Troy.

Answer: primal

From Shakespeare's Hamlet:

"O, my offense is rank, it smells to heaven;
It hath the primal eldest curse upon't,
A brother's murder." (III,iii)

Claudius here recalls the first such offense in the slaying of Abel by his brother Cain, and Cain's subsequent exile from God's presence (the oldest curse).

Answer: Primula

'Primula' is a shortened form of the Middle Latin 'primula veris', which translates to 'first (flower) of spring'.