FREE! Click here to Join FunTrivia. Thousands of games, quizzes, and lots more!
Name the Poet Quizzes, Trivia and Puzzles
Name the Poet Quizzes, Trivia

Name the Poet Trivia

Name the Poet Trivia Quizzes

  1. Home
  2. »
  3. Quizzes
  4. »
  5. Literature Trivia
  6. »
  7. Poetry

Fun Trivia
Can you identify the poets in these quizzes from information about their lives, their poetry, or an extract from one of their most familiar poems?
29 quizzes and 310 trivia questions.
1.
Whos That Poet
  Who's That Poet? editor best quiz   best quiz  
Photo Quiz
 10 Qns
Can you identify these poets from their pictures? To help you, some clues about their life and works have been given as well.
Easier, 10 Qns, stedman, Oct 04 23
Easier
stedman editor
Oct 04 23
5179 plays
2.
Whos That Other Poet
  Who's That Other Poet?   best quiz  
Photo Quiz
 10 Qns
Since my previous "Who's That Poet?" quiz only took us up to the letter "K", a sequel was surely inevitable. As before, the pictures are supported with clues about their life and works.
Easier, 10 Qns, stedman, Dec 25 16
Easier
stedman editor
3282 plays
3.
  Matching British Poets and Poems   top quiz  
Match Quiz
 10 Qns
This quiz features ten poems written by British poets. All you need to do is match them up with who wrote them.
Very Easy, 10 Qns, Fifiona81, Oct 04 22
Very Easy
Fifiona81 editor
Oct 04 22
326 plays
4.
  Nineteenth Century Poets   great trivia quiz  
Match Quiz
 10 Qns
You may or may not remember reading these classic poems in school. Can you match each with its author?
Easier, 10 Qns, looney_tunes, Mar 29 22
Recommended for grades: 11,12
Easier
looney_tunes editor
Mar 29 22
349 plays
5.
  It Was the Best of Rhymes   great trivia quiz  
Match Quiz
 10 Qns
For the first task of the Leg #2 of the Amazing Race, on behalf of the Last Ones In I present you some of my favourite English-language poems. Can you match the lines to the poems they belong to and their authors?
Average, 10 Qns, LadyNym, Feb 12 19
Average
LadyNym gold member
Feb 12 19
1827 plays
6.
  Name That Poet In Three Clues!   best quiz  
Multiple Choice
 10 Qns
How do you love poetry? Let's count the ways and see if you recognize some of the world's greatest poets from a line of their poetry and two other interesting tidbits.
Average, 10 Qns, bottle_rocket, Dec 25 16
Average
bottle_rocket gold member
2884 plays
7.
  Poetic Justice   popular trivia quiz  
Match Quiz
 10 Qns
Match the poets to their works.
Very Easy, 10 Qns, nyirene330, Oct 02 19
Recommended for grades: 9,10,11,12
Very Easy
nyirene330
Oct 02 19
642 plays
8.
  Bad Pickup Lines: Poetry Edition editor best quiz   best quiz  
Multiple Choice
 10 Qns
I'm trying to imitate love poetry of some of the greatest poets of history, but for some reason, something's not going right. Can you still identify through substance and style which poets might have penned these lines?
Average, 10 Qns, adams627, Dec 25 16
Average
adams627
708 plays
9.
  Poet's Corner   popular trivia quiz  
Match Quiz
 10 Qns
Can you match the poem title to the correct poet?
Easier, 10 Qns, nyirene330, Dec 25 16
Easier
nyirene330
588 plays
10.
  Match the Poem Title to the Author    
Match Quiz
 10 Qns
I have listed a selection of poetry titles. Can you match them to the correct author? Enjoy.
Average, 10 Qns, rubytops, Dec 25 16
Average
rubytops gold member
885 plays
trivia question Quick Question
This Victorian Poet Laureate is perhaps best known for his poem about daffodils. Who was he?

From Quiz "Poet Laureates of the UK"




11.
  Poetic Parodies   top quiz  
Multiple Choice
 10 Qns
Verse parody in English is as least as old as Chaucer, but this quiz deals with the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Can you identify the poets who are the authors or targets of ten parodies?
Average, 10 Qns, TabbyTom, Dec 25 16
Average
TabbyTom gold member
2241 plays
12.
  Poet's Lines    
Match Quiz
 10 Qns
Trying something new for my 100th quiz, my first foray into poetry. Please match the author with the (hopefully) recognizable lines from their famous poem.
Easier, 10 Qns, wjames, Aug 26 18
Easier
wjames gold member
Aug 26 18
471 plays
13.
  Poet Tree   popular trivia quiz  
Match Quiz
 10 Qns
Match the poet to his poem.
Average, 10 Qns, nyirene330, Dec 25 16
Average
nyirene330
491 plays
14.
  Poets and Their Works    
Match Quiz
 10 Qns
If you like poetry see if you can match these popular poems with their creators.
Easier, 10 Qns, Serenesh, Jun 24 19
Easier
Serenesh gold member
Jun 24 19
549 plays
15.
  Poetic Licence   popular trivia quiz  
Match Quiz
 10 Qns
Identify the poet from the first two opening lines of a poem.
Average, 10 Qns, gme24, Aug 06 18
Average
gme24 gold member
Aug 06 18
292 plays
16.
  Poems and Their Poets    
Match Quiz
 10 Qns
Match each poem with the person who authored it. Poems are from various eras and poets, both from the US and UK.
Easier, 10 Qns, AlexT781, Aug 03 18
Easier
AlexT781
Aug 03 18
510 plays
17.
  Poet Laureates of the UK   popular trivia quiz  
Multiple Choice
 10 Qns
The Poet Laureate of the United Kingdom is a member of the Royal Household. He or she is appointed by the monarch to write poems celebrating important state occasions.
Easier, 10 Qns, Spontini, Dec 25 16
Easier
Spontini
339 plays
18.
  Memorable Poetry Recalled   popular trivia quiz  
Multiple Choice
 10 Qns
This quiz is about poems I have loved and lived with since I was a child. I delight in sharing them with you now. So, I give you some first lines of some memorable poems and a clue or two and you tell me the poet.
Average, 10 Qns, bracklaman, Nov 02 19
Average
bracklaman
Nov 02 19
1810 plays
19.
  A World of Women Poets   popular trivia quiz  
Multiple Choice
 20 Qns
Her name, birth country, birth year, the title of (or a line from) one of her poems. I'll give you three (I'm generous like that) and you pick the fourth. The real objective is to learn more about these well-versed women. For the poetry-obsessed only!
Tough, 20 Qns, LilahDeDah, Dec 25 16
Tough
LilahDeDah
1251 plays
20.
  Averse to Verse?    
Multiple Choice
 10 Qns
This quiz is about the poetry of ten mixed writers, some of whom influenced the others. Their works have lasted for many generations. Don't be averse, please enjoy!
Average, 10 Qns, alexis722, Dec 25 16
Average
alexis722
354 plays
21.
  Famous Poems   popular trivia quiz  
Multiple Choice
 20 Qns
This is a poem for all those who love poetry. I will give you the name of a famous poem, and you choose the poet who wrote it!
Average, 20 Qns, sapient, Dec 25 16
Average
sapient
2420 plays
22.
  "The Nation's Favourite Poems" Name the Author    
Multiple Choice
 10 Qns
All poems are taken from the BBC's book: "The Nation's Favourite Poems". I will give you two lines from each poem and ask you to pick the author.
Average, 10 Qns, cmt101, Mar 21 22
Average
cmt101
Mar 21 22
632 plays
23.
  Tonight We Dream In Poems    
Multiple Choice
 10 Qns
Whoa. What a curious dream. I'm sitting in this unfamiliar, grand dining room with settings for 12. In walk ten individuals, some I recognize and some I don't. They begin to talk in verse. I take a seat and invite you to join me...
Average, 10 Qns, themats, Dec 25 16
Average
themats
525 plays
24.
  Name the Poet From the Line    
Multiple Choice
 10 Qns
Name the poet from the line. There is of course a catch. I have put the poem in the words of famous actors and you know they have a tendency to ad lib.
Difficult, 10 Qns, professorjon, Dec 25 16
Difficult
professorjon
1507 plays
25.
  They Were Poets and They Knew it.    
Multiple Choice
 10 Qns
This series of questions concerns English writers of the nineteenth century. Tragedy and tomfoolery abounds. Have fun and good luck.
Average, 10 Qns, yowzayowza, Dec 25 16
Average
yowzayowza
391 plays
26.
  W. B. throws a party    
Multiple Choice
 10 Qns
Brrrr! W.B., I do wish you would not hold soirees in this drafty tower. How many of W.B. Yeats distinguished literary guests do you recognise? You need to really know your poets for this quiz. Enjoy.
Difficult, 10 Qns, Fiachra, Dec 25 16
Difficult
Fiachra
465 plays
27.
  16th - 18th Century British Poetry    
Multiple Choice
 10 Qns
Identify the poet from either the lines or title provided.
Average, 10 Qns, RavenHex, Dec 25 16
Average
RavenHex
757 plays
28.
  Books of Poetry    
Multiple Choice
 10 Qns
Rather than dealing with individual poems, this quiz asks you to identify the author of certain books of poetry
Average, 10 Qns, robert362, Dec 25 16
Average
robert362
890 plays
29.
  Modern Poets and Their Works    
Multiple Choice
 10 Qns
This quiz is designed to test how much you know about modern world poets ... enjoy!
Difficult, 10 Qns, nerthus, Dec 25 16
Difficult
nerthus
687 plays
Related Topics
  Poetic Quotes [Literature] (45 quizzes)

  Poetry [Literature] (160 quizzes)

  Poetry by Theme [Literature] (16 quizzes)

  Poetry for Children [For Children] (11 quizzes)

  Poets [People] (15 quizzes)


Name the Poet Trivia Questions

1. This Victorian Poet Laureate is perhaps best known for his poem about daffodils. Who was he?

From Quiz
Poet Laureates of the UK

Answer: William Wordsworth

The title of the poem is the same as its first line and goes:- "I wandered lonely as a cloud that floats on high o'er vales and hills when all at once I saw a crowd a host of dancing Daffodils". Wordsworth travelled to revolutionary France in 1791 and fell in love with a young Frenchwoman with whom he had a child. He returned to England the following year. He wrote a sonnet called "It is a beauteous evening, calm and free" describing his first meeting with his daughter some nine years later. He became Poet Laureate in 1843, but never actually wrote an official poem during his tenure of the office. He died in 1850.

2. "The Angel that presided o'er my birth Said 'Little creature, form'd of Joy and Mirth, Go, love without the help of any Thing on Earth'" Who wrote this?

From Quiz Averse to Verse?

Answer: William Blake

William Blake (1757 - 1827) was a British mystic poet, painter and engraver. He printed and illustrated most of his own work. Blake wrote "Songs of Innocence" and "Songs of Experience", among others, and is well remembered for his "Tyger, Tyger, burning bright, In the forests of the night, What immortal hand or eye Could frame thy fearful symmetry?" The fall of man, and his redemption, was often the theme that inspired him, and his works inspired many others. William S Burroughs was not a poet, but a writer of works based on the drug culture, evils of technology and death. He is usually best remembered for "Naked Lunch" published in 1959. Edgar Rice Burroughs was the British writer of the Tarzan series and some early sci-fi. Robert Blake was an American actor.

3. French writer Hippolyte Taine compiled a 'History of English Literature' in the middle years of the 19th century. Who did he single out as the finest poet of that century?

From Quiz They Were Poets and They Knew it.

Answer: Byron

And he went a bit over the top in his praise. "He is so great and so English," Taine asserted, "that from him alone we shall learn more truths of his country and his age than from all the rest together." Wow. Byron, I'm certain, would have agreed.

4. Which poet is being parodied in these lines by Samuel Taylor Coleridge's son Hartley? "He lived amidst the untrodden ways To Rydal Lake that lead; A bard whom there were none to praise, And very few to read."

From Quiz Poetic Parodies

Answer: William Wordsworth

Few great poets have been parodied so mercilessly as Wordsworth, probably because few of them have descended from the sublime to the ridiculous so frequently. "She dwelt among the untrodden ways" is one of Wordsworth's "Lucy Gray" poems, commemorating the short life of a Lakeland girl who may or may not have existed.

5. Her story is one of the earliest examples of Hebrew poetry, dating from the 2nd half of the 12th century BCE. Who wrote "I arose a mother in Israel. They chose new gods; Then was war in the gates:"?

From Quiz A World of Women Poets

Answer: Deborah

The Biblical passage quoted is from Judges 5:7-8, known as the "Song of Deborah". It is not known how many of the various Songs of "The Old Testament" were written by women.

6. Ezra! what are you reading? "the evening is spread out against the sky like a patient etherised upon a table"

From Quiz W. B. throws a party

Answer: T.S. Eliot

The lines come from 'The Love Song of J Alfred Prufrock'. Ezra Pound was a friend of both Yeats and Eliot. He helped Eliot find a publisher for his works.

7. Who wrote "The Road Not Taken"?

From Quiz Famous Poems

Answer: Robert Frost

This poem was written in 1916.

8. 'Whoso list to hunt, I know where is an hind, But as for me, alas, I may no more; The vain travail hath wearied me so sore, I am of them that further come behind'

From Quiz 16th - 18th Century British Poetry

Answer: Thomas Wyatt

Scholars believe that Wyatt wrote this for Anne Boleyn, formerly his mistress, second wife of Henry VIII, and mother to Queen Elizabeth I.

9. 'A Season In Hell'

From Quiz Books of Poetry

Answer: Arthur Rimbaud

His output as a poet ended early; so did his life. Apparently, a bit of a wild man.

10. "You have to be always drunk...so as not to feel the horrible burden of time that breaks your back. But on what? Wine, poetry or virtue, as you wish..." What French writer advised us to "Be Drunk"?

From Quiz Averse to Verse?

Answer: Baudelaire

Charles Pierre Baudelaire (1821 - 1867), led a short, decadent, eccentric and violent life. He was a great admirer of Poe, and is remembered for his "Les Fleurs Du Mal" ("The Flowers of Evil") collection of poems. His only other known work, "Paris Spleen", was published after his death, in 1868, and consisted of about fifty poems.

11. Which poet composed the following: "And thro' the field the road runs by/ To many tower'd Camelot"?

From Quiz "The Nation's Favourite Poems" Name the Author

Answer: Alfred, Lord Tennyson

Alfred was born on August 6th 1809 in Somersby, England and died in 1892. In 1829, Tennyson gained the Chancellor's medal for an English prize poem, entitled: "Timbuctoo". His father, Dr. George Clayton Tennyson, was a reverend. In 1830, with his friend Arthur Hallam, Tennyson joined a Spanish revolutionary army. Alfred was appointed Poet Laureate of England in 1850. The lines used for the question have been taken from the poem "The Lady of Shalott".

12. Lady Caroline Lamb is remembered for her obsession with which poet?

From Quiz They Were Poets and They Knew it.

Answer: Lord Byron

Sometimes, you can't keep them away with a duelling pistol and a clove of garlic. Poor Caroline Lamb. She pursued Byron with ferocity and a twinge of madness, driving the hunted man into a disastrous marriage with Annabella Milbanke. Poor Annabella. She later discovered her husband in a romantic tryst with his own half-sister. Ah, the Romantic poets.

13. "The stately homes of England, How beautiful they stand, Amidst their tall ancestral trees O'er all the pleasant land!" The words are those of Mrs Felicia Dorothea Hemans, who died in 1835, but who parodied them in a musical comedy in 1938?

From Quiz Poetic Parodies

Answer: Noel Coward

Mrs Hemans (née Browne) was immensely popular in her day, but her name is now almost completely forgotten, even by those who know her most famous line "The boy stood on the burning deck ...." Most people know Coward's parody ("How beautiful they stand, to prove the upper classes have still the upper hand") better than Mrs Hemans' original.

14. Who is examining the golden glow of whiskey and "rag[ing] against the dying of the light"?

From Quiz W. B. throws a party

Answer: Dylan Thomas

Dylan Thomas, alas, had a fondness for drink which contributed to his early death. The lines come from 'Do Not Go Gentle Into That Goodnight', where he encourages his father to defy death as long as possible, and struggle on in spite of old age. Dylan also wrote the incredible play for voices 'Under Milk Wood'.

15. "Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night"?

From Quiz Famous Poems

Answer: Dylan Thomas

This poem is a villanelle, which is a fixed form of poetry that was originated by French poets of the Middle Ages. It was written in 1952.

16. Who wrote 'The Faerie Queen'?

From Quiz 16th - 18th Century British Poetry

Answer: Edmund Spenser

This poem was a tribute to Queen Elizabeth I and a thinly veiled slam against the Catholic church.

17. 'The Flowers of Evil'

From Quiz Books of Poetry

Answer: Charles Baudelaire

His most famous work.

18. The first female Poet Laureate was appointed by Queen Elizabeth II. Who was she?

From Quiz Poet Laureates of the UK

Answer: Carol Ann Duffy

Carol Ann Duffy was appointed Laureate in 2009. She spent some time as a writer for television after gaining her degree in philosophy in 1977, before turning to poetry. She won several major awards for her poetry collections and has also been a lecturer at Manchester University and the writer of successful plays and children's books.

19. "I saw the best minds of my generation destroyed by madness, starving hysterical naked..." Which 'Beat' poet began his major poetic work this way?

From Quiz Averse to Verse?

Answer: Allen Ginsberg

Allen Ginsberg (1926 - 1997), was an American poet and a great influence on the 'beat generation'. The line cited is from his very long poem "Howl", in which he rages against the establishment. He also wrote "Kaddish For Naomi Ginsberg", his mother, after she died in 1956. Much of his work incited criticism and outrage, as the language was clear and strong. He was an advocate for free speech and gay rights, and later in life became a Distinguished Professor at Brooklyn College in New York. Jack Kerouac was also one of the 'beat' writers, and his works reflect the drug scene as well as excesses of alcohol and sex. His novel "On The Road" was published in 1957.

20. "'Is there anybody there?' said the Traveller/ Knocking on the moonlit door..." are famous lines from a poem written by which poet?

From Quiz "The Nation's Favourite Poems" Name the Author

Answer: Walter De La Mare

Walter De La Mare was born in 1873 and brought up in Charlton, Kent, England. It is with this poem, "The Listeners", in 1912, that Walter first gained literary success. Walter's full name is Walter John De La Mare. As well as a poet, Walter was also an anthologist. He was educated at St. Paul's School, London.

21. More inspired advice came from the poet who wrote these opening lines. But which poet, can you tell me? "The Camel's hump is an ugly lump Which well you may see at the Zoo; But uglier yet is the hump we get From having too little to do"

From Quiz Memorable Poetry Recalled

Answer: Rudyard Kipling

These lines are by Rudyard Kipling from his poem 'The Hump'. Rudyard Kipling (1865-1936) was born in Bombay in what is the present day Mombai. His father was a teacher in a local school of art. As was fairly common practice at the time for middle class families he was sent to England (aged six) to be educated at public school life. He was abused by his foster parents and had a generally unhappy childhood. Some critics have seen the experiences of his relatively unhappy childhood reflected in his works aimed at children in his writing, especially in his masterpiece, the novel Kim (1901) He also wrote instructive and amusing tales for children, always with a strict moral tone such as 'The Jungle Book' and the 'Just So Stories'.

22. Who penned the following lines from 'Meeting at Night'? The gray sea and the long black land; And the yellow half-moon large and low.

From Quiz They Were Poets and They Knew it.

Answer: Robert Browning

By all accounts, Browning was something of a homebody and momma's boy. He was in his mid-thirties when he married Elizabeth Barrett and prior to that he had never been far from his parents' hearth and home. He was often referred to as 'Mrs. Browning's husband'.

23. Within her masterwork, "The Tale of Genji", this Japanese author placed a number of stunning poems. She was born in 974.

From Quiz A World of Women Poets

Answer: Murasaki Shikibu

Lady Murasaki also wrote poems in Chinese. The incorrect choices are all modern Japanese female poets.

24. "I am not yet born; O hear me, Let not the man who is beast or who thinks he is God come near me". Author please.

From Quiz W. B. throws a party

Answer: Louis MacNeice

These lines come from the chilling poem 'A Prayer Before Birth'. The poet speaks as an unborn child. He paints a nightmare view of the world except in one delightful verse, where he asks for 'water to dandle me' 'grass to grow for me' and 'a white light' to guide me.

25. John Cleese: "I wandared lonely as a cloud . . . I mean I wandered lonely as a cloud". The poet?

From Quiz Name the Poet From the Line

Answer: William Wordsworth

William Wordsworth: "I wandered lonely as a cloud that floats on high o'er vales and hills when all at once I saw a crowd of golden daffodils". John Cleese wrote and starred in the 1988 movie "A Fish Called Wanda". Cleese plays a lawyer who falls in love with Wanda (played by Jamie Lee Curtis) and while he is questioning her on the stand he accidentally calls her by name, but he is able to recover by changing the 'Wanda' to wonder.

26. "I Wandered Lonely As A Cloud"?

From Quiz Famous Poems

Answer: William Wordsworth

This poem was first printed in 1807, but Wordsworth made a few changes, including the addition of the entire second stanza. It was reprinted in 1815.

27. What famed Elizabethan playwright also penned 'The Passionate Shepherd to His Love'?

From Quiz 16th - 18th Century British Poetry

Answer: Christopher Marlowe

What promised to be a brilliant career was cut short by his untimely death in a bar room brawl.

28. 'Sonnets from the Portugese'

From Quiz Books of Poetry

Answer: Elizabeth Barrett Browning

'How do I love thee ...' and so forth.

29. "Out flew the web and floated wide - The mirror cracked from side to side; 'The curse is come upon me', cried...The Lady of Shalott." Who wrote these lines?

From Quiz Averse to Verse?

Answer: Alfred Lord Tennyson

The Lady of Shalott lives alone in a tower, weaving, but she is cursed: "She knows not what the curse may be, And so she weaveth steadily, And little other care hath she..." She may not look out of her window at Camelot, but sees comings and goings outside in the reflection of her mirror. And then one day Sir Lancelot rode down to Camelot and she looked out the window at him, which brought on the curse: she left the tower, dressed in white, she lay down in a small boat after painting her name on it, and died as she floated toward Camelot. Lancelot found her and had her properly buried, though he didn't know who she was. Englishman Lord Tennyson (1809 - 1892)also wrote "The Charge of The Light Brigade", "In Memoriam" {for his friend, Hallam, who died young)and "Idylls of The King". The lady in the poem may represent one of the Elaines in Arthurian legend. The poem has been used in parts by many other authors, such as Agatha Christie in "The Mirror Cracked".

30. Who wrote a poem including the following lines: "I was much further out than you thought/ And not waving but drowning"?

From Quiz "The Nation's Favourite Poems" Name the Author

Answer: Stevie Smith

Stevie's real name was in fact Florence Margaret Smith; she was born in Hull, England in 1902 and died in 1971. When Florence was a child her mother died, forcing her and her sister to move in with their aunt, knick-named 'lion.' Stevie's first book was published in 1936. Florence attended the North London Collegiate School for Girls in London, which she moved to at the age of three. Florence's first and only job was with the magazine publisher, Newnes-Pearson. The title of the poem used is in the lines themselves: "Not Waving, But Drowning".

This is category 22374
Last Updated Mar 23 2024 5:50 AM
play trivia = Top 5% Rated Quiz, take trivia quiz Top 10% Rated Quiz, test trivia quiz Top 20% Rated Quiz, popular trivia A Well Rated Quiz
new quizzes = added recently, editor pick = Editor's Pick editor = FunTrivia Editor gold = Gold Member

Teachers / educators: FunTrivia welcomes the use of our website and quizzes in the classroom as a teaching aid or for preparing and testing students. See our education section. Our quizzes are printable and may be used as question sheets by k-12 teachers, parents, and home schoolers.

 ·  All questions, answers, and quiz content on this website is copyright FunTrivia, Inc and may not be reproduced without permission. Any images from TV shows and movies are copyright their studios, and are being used under "fair use" for commentary and education.