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Quiz about Sesquipedalian Logodaedaly Redux
Quiz about Sesquipedalian Logodaedaly Redux

Sesquipedalian Logodaedaly Redux! Quiz


Here we go with another set of questions for all you foot-and-a-half-long word wizards! (Er, that's the words that are a foot and a half long. Not the wizards.)

A multiple-choice quiz by ecoli23. Estimated time: 6 mins.
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Author
ecoli23
Time
6 mins
Type
Multiple Choice
Quiz #
261,809
Updated
Dec 03 21
# Qns
10
Difficulty
Tough
Avg Score
5 / 10
Plays
604
Awards
Top 20% Quiz
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Question 1 of 10
1. Once again, we'll start off this quiz by giving you an answer! "Batrachomyomachia" means "a foolish altercation". It's a useful word for some of us logodaedalians, who find ourselves in silly quarrels a lot. But where does the word come from originally? Hint


Question 2 of 10
2. Having established in the first Sesquipedalian Logodaedaly quiz that you are a confirmed gynotikolobomassophile, you change the subject and whisper, "My dear, I'd love to see you in a nychthemeron!" as you: Hint


Question 3 of 10
3. Everybody seems to love phobias -- or at least the weird names attached to them. Which of the following phobias is mismatched with its definition?

Hint


Question 4 of 10
4. Okay, this one's completely unfair unless you're some kind of weird sesquipedalian mathematician. Which mathematical term is the odd one out? Hint


Question 5 of 10
5. Ah, the classics! A great source of unusual words! Which of the following mythological objects was filipendulous? Hint


Question 6 of 10
6. "Calzoons!" A fun word to say, but how would you (most) properly use it in a sentence? Hint


Question 7 of 10
7. When I was still but a young semipedalian (I just made that word up, but I like it), the longest word I knew was "supercalifragilisticexpialidocious" -- from Disney's "Mary Poppins" of course. I'd always assumed that it was coined by the movie's songwriters, Richard and Robert Sherman, but recently I was somewhat startled to learn that the word's origin really is: Hint


Question 8 of 10
8. Who would you most likely want to invite to dinner? A person who was known as:
Hint


Question 9 of 10
9. You logodaedalians are surely aware of the many "weird word" lists floating around the Internet. The last word in many of these lists, and even in a few legitimate dictionaries, is "zzxjoanw", which is defined as "a Maori war drum". What's suspicious about this "fact"? Hint


Question 10 of 10
10. You're at a cocktail party, and some old guy is monopolizing the conversation with his sesquipedalia. You want to leave quickly and quietly, so you: Hint



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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts
1. Once again, we'll start off this quiz by giving you an answer! "Batrachomyomachia" means "a foolish altercation". It's a useful word for some of us logodaedalians, who find ourselves in silly quarrels a lot. But where does the word come from originally?

Answer: The Ancient Greek equivalent of "Mad" magazine

"Batrachomyomachia" is a parody of the "Iliad", sometimes attributed to Homer himself, but certainly of ancient origin. The title translates as "The War Between Frogs and Mice" -- I'm sure hilarity ensues!
2. Having established in the first Sesquipedalian Logodaedaly quiz that you are a confirmed gynotikolobomassophile, you change the subject and whisper, "My dear, I'd love to see you in a nychthemeron!" as you:

Answer: Pencil in next evening in your daytimer

A "nychthemeron" is literally "a night and a day", or a 24-hour period. Oh, and for those who haven't done Part 1 yet, a "gynotikolobomassophile" is someone who loves ("-phile") to nibble ("-masso-") on the lobe ("-lobo-") of the ear ("-otiko-") of a woman ("gyn-"). (There, now you've got a free answer when you do that quiz!)
3. Everybody seems to love phobias -- or at least the weird names attached to them. Which of the following phobias is mismatched with its definition?

Answer: Autodysomophobia: Fear of crossing the street

The fear of crossing the street is called agyophobia. So presumably, alektoragyophobia would be the fear of the chicken that crossed the road! (Autodysomophobia is actually the fear of one's own body odor being offensive.)
4. Okay, this one's completely unfair unless you're some kind of weird sesquipedalian mathematician. Which mathematical term is the odd one out?

Answer: Zenzizenzizenzic

"Zenzizenzizenzic" is an obsolete word meaning "the eighth power of a number: -- e.g., the zenzizenzizenzic of 2 is 256. (It must have been a relief when they invented superscripts!) The other words are all from the geometrical branch of math: they're names for polyhedra in a group called "Johnson solids" -- and I'll admit right now that's all I know about them.

But I think the next time someone cuts me off in traffic, I'm going to call them a "gyrobifastigium" or a "disphenocingulum"! That'll show'em!
5. Ah, the classics! A great source of unusual words! Which of the following mythological objects was filipendulous?

Answer: Damocles' sword

It means "hanging by a thread". (See there was this Greek guy named Damocles, and he ... ah, heck, it's the 21st century, just Google it!)
6. "Calzoons!" A fun word to say, but how would you (most) properly use it in a sentence?

Answer: "I see London, I see France, I see somebody's calzoons!"

It's an obsolete word for "underpants", related to Italian "calzone". (And please don't mail me with ways to make "underpants" work in the other sentences. I really don't want to know.)
7. When I was still but a young semipedalian (I just made that word up, but I like it), the longest word I knew was "supercalifragilisticexpialidocious" -- from Disney's "Mary Poppins" of course. I'd always assumed that it was coined by the movie's songwriters, Richard and Robert Sherman, but recently I was somewhat startled to learn that the word's origin really is:

Answer: Lost in the mists of obscurity

The Sherman brothers later said they'd learned a variation of the word at summer camp when they were kids, and some sources trace it as far back as World War I. But admit it, you were rooting for the Dick Van Dyke story, weren't you?
8. Who would you most likely want to invite to dinner? A person who was known as:

Answer: A deipnosophist

A "deipnosophist" is a sparkling dinner conversationalist. On the other hand, a "valetudinarian" is a hypochondriac, "aboiement" is the production of strange noises, and "fimiculous" means "living in excrement" -- if you chose any of these last three answers on purpose, don't be surprised if I decline an invitation to one of your dinner parties!
9. You logodaedalians are surely aware of the many "weird word" lists floating around the Internet. The last word in many of these lists, and even in a few legitimate dictionaries, is "zzxjoanw", which is defined as "a Maori war drum". What's suspicious about this "fact"?

Answer: All of these

The word can be traced back to a 1905 specialty dictionary, "The Musical Guide", by one Rupert Hughes, who claimed it was pronounced "shaw"(!) and could refer to a drum, a fife, or a conclusion. (I have heard a rumour that he had the hots for a certain Joan W. Shaw -- get it? -- but I haven't been able to confirm this!) Anyway, the entry survived into subsequent editions (re-titled "The Music Lovers' Encyclopedia"), and has managed to fool quite a few lexicologists since then, apparently including the redoubtable Mrs. Byrne! (See my first "Sesquipedalian Logodaedaly" quiz for more info on her.)

Bonus sequipedalia: The Maori are one of the cultures that never developed "membranophones": drums. Their percussion instruments were more of the "bang sticks together" type. (Sorry, haven't found a foot-and-a-half long word for that yet!)

Bonus logodaedaly: The letters of the English alphabet used for rendering the Maori language include only the five vowels, plus h, k, m, n, p, r, t, and w, as well as h when used in wh and g when used in ng.

Whew! On to the last question ...
10. You're at a cocktail party, and some old guy is monopolizing the conversation with his sesquipedalia. You want to leave quickly and quietly, so you:

Answer: Absquatulate

"Absquatulation" is the act of leaving hurriedly or secretly. "Exosculation" is kissing, "unguiculate" means equipped with claws, and "incatenation" is restraint with chains.

Speaking of absquatulation, my time has come once again. Until next time, may I suggest you check out the "Weird Words" section of Michael Quinion's excellent World Wide Words site (www.worldwidewords.org) -- my inspiration for several of the questions in this quiz!
Source: Author ecoli23

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