Bats? Trivia Quiz

Answer: Cricket bat

The game of cricket is played almost exclusively in Commonwealth countries.
Look at this snapshot of a game in play - you will see on the field:-
Two batsmen, one of whom is facing a ball from the bowler and is at the same end of the pitch as the wicket keeper. The other batsman, who is not receiving, is standing at the bowlers end. Both are holding cricket bats.

The bowler is trying to get the batsman out. The wicket keeper, who stands behind the batsman, will field the ball if the batsman does not hit it.

Nine fielders are scattered around the ground, whose job is to stop - or even hopefully catch - the ball after it has been hit by the batsman. Two umpires rule on happenings in the game.

Answer: Quilt batting

When my wife makes a quilt, the final stage seems to take an enormous amount of time. She will apply a backing sheet, and then put stuffing between the patterned front and the backing sheet. She calls this padding "batting". The last stage is to sew the parts securely together by applying decorative stitching to the quilt.

Answer: Didn't bat an eyelid

The phrase is sometimes "didn't bat an eyelash", or "didn't bat an eye".
It implies no emotional response at all, neither happy nor sad, neither disturbed nor complaisant. In falconry, when a bird flutters its wings while still being held, it is known as "batting", and the fluttering of an eyelid is called by the same term.

Answer: Baseball bat

Nothing more to be said about the game. In Britain, however, baseball bats are often common household items, almost never used for playing baseball, but kept handy as a potential defence against burglars etc, and sometimes used by thugs as offensive weapons.

Answer: Ping pong bat

Ping pong, as it is known in America, is more properly called table tennis. Again in the USA, the implement is commonly called a "paddle" rather than a bat. Sometimes it is even called a racket, although unlike in other racket games no volleying is allowed. The ball must bounce before it is returned.

Answer: Batman

A batman in the British military was a personal servant to a commissioned officer. The two examples are of course fictional, but the position really existed until after the Second World War.
The word "bat" once meant a pack saddle that held an officers kit, and the bat man was responsible for looking after this.

Answer: Horseshoe bat

Depending on the source it is said that there are 900 or 1100 different species of bat. Horseshoe bats (Rhinolophus) are named after the shape of their noseleaves, a complex horseshoe-shaped fold of skin used both to emit squeaks and to focus the returning echoing sounds.

Answer: Batten down

Sailing ships in particular had hatches which gave access to cargo storage below decks. These hatches were sometimes open but more often covered with a wooden grating to allow for ventilation. When bad weather threatened these hatches were covered with tarpaulin to prevent the entry of water, and the covering was edged with wooden strips, known as battens, to prevent it from being blown off. Sailors called this 'battening down'.

Answer: With bated breath

One explanation of this phrase is that "bated" is an abbreviation for "abated", implying holding one's breath while expecting something dramatic to happen.
An alternative theory is that it comes from falconry (again!) when a bird will "bat" or "bate" its wings in agitation. This sense of fluttering or panting is in contrast to the first idea, but still gives a sense of expectation.

Answer: Baton

In military circles, a high-ranking officer carries a short stick which is called a baton. Napoleon had a saying "Every French soldier carries a marshal's baton in his knapsack", implying that promotion in the French Army was by merit.

Toscanini was, of course, a world famous conductor of symphony orchestras, and conductors invariably conduct using a baton.