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Words ... words ... words Trivia Quiz

The origins of words are often hotly debated. In this quiz most of the word-origins are generally accepted by the current etymologists. Try an educated guess?

A multiple-choice quiz by flem-ish. Estimated time: 6 mins.

Author
flem-ish

Time
6 mins

Type
Multiple Choice

Quiz #
73,807

Updated
Jul 21 22

# Qns
10

Difficulty
Difficult

Avg Score
4 / 10

Plays
1363

One at a Time - Single Page - Timed Game

Question 1 of 10

1. What was a pomegranate originally, for those who coined the word? Hint

an apple looking like a grenade

an apple as hard as granite

an apple with a coarse-grained texture

an apple full of seeds

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Question 2 of 10

2. Which of these herbs got its name because people considered that it smelled a bit like new-mown hay? Hint

sage

fennel

tarragon

basil

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Question 3 of 10

3. What did it originally mean to 'eat humble pie'? Hint

to eat pie made with the umbles or offal of a deer

to eat pie made in the shape of a human (Spanish ombre)

to eat a poorly baked pie

to eat pie made with umble or hopbeer

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Question 4 of 10

4. Why is Pentecost also called Whitsunday? Hint

the link is not with white but with Anglo-Saxon witan;German wissen;wise;wisdom

because in the Easter weeks christians had gone to confession and now their souls were supposed to b

because on that day the new candidates for baptism came to church in white robes

because it was the first day that priests again wore white garments during Holy Mass

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Question 5 of 10

5. How did the chameleon get its name? Hint

the people considered that it looked like a 'little camel'

from Greek chamilion which means camomile-coloured

people thought it was a ground-lion

named after the Jesuit traveller George J.Kamel d.1706

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Question 6 of 10

6. What was a Yeoman of the Guard originally? Hint

a strong guy

a young man

a sword-bearer

a servant

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Question 7 of 10

7. Which of these words does NOT derive from the Latin root procurator, or procuratio ? Hint

curate

proxy

proctor

curator

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Question 8 of 10

8. What was a neighbour originally? Hint

a noisy farmer

a fellow competitor

a nearby farmer

a stableservant

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Question 9 of 10

9. What does ombudsman literally mean? Hint

the enlightened one as in Boddhisatta

the foreboder or bringer of messages

man who sits in the umbra or shade when listening to a juridical dispute

the one that is aware of both sides

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Question 10 of 10

10. Which of these proper names literally means horse-lover? Hint

Philip

Philomel

Hippolyte

Syphilis

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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. What was a pomegranate originally, for those who coined the word?

Answer: an apple full of seeds

The grenade was named after the pomegranate, not the other way round.

2. Which of these herbs got its name because people considered that it smelled a bit like new-mown hay?

Answer: fennel

Fennel derives from foeniculum which relates to Latin fenum (E. hay). Compare French fenouil and Dutch venkel. There is another herb that gets its name from the same root: fenum graecum or fenugreek. Tarragon has no links with Tarragona in Spain, but derives from Greek drakon. English dragon and refers to the outer appearance of the plant. Basil or 'basilikon' means 'royal', the 'royal herb'.

3. What did it originally mean to 'eat humble pie'?

Answer: to eat pie made with the umbles or offal of a deer

Poperinge in Flanders is not only a hop-growing area but also produces 'hommel'beer. Strong beer with an explicit taste of hop. But 'humble' pie is not made with hop or hopbeer. It indeed uses the lesser parts of deer-meat:the umbles. The word "umbles" derives from the old French term "noumbles", which itself derives from Latin "lumbulus" a diminutive of lumbus from which English got loin and lumbar. French "noumbles" became English "numbles". By "metanalysis" a "numble-pie" became "an umble pie". Compare " a norange" (from Spanish naranja)becoming "an orange", " a nadder" becoming an "adder." As "humble" from Latin humilis was often pronounced without an h, the confusion was easy to make. Umble pie got the connotation of "humility pie".

4. Why is Pentecost also called Whitsunday?

Answer: because on that day the new candidates for baptism came to church in white robes

The Enlightment of Minds by the Holy Ghost is *not* what is meant here. The candidates for baptism wore white and the word candidatus itself meant somebody weearing white in preparation for receiving Holy Baptism.

5. How did the chameleon get its name?

Answer: people thought it was a ground-lion

The camelia got its name after George J. Kamel. The chameleon is not specially 'camomile'-coloured. Camomile originally means :earth-apple.

6. What was a Yeoman of the Guard originally?

Answer: a young man

In spite of their reputation as 'Beefeaters' the Yeomen of the Guard were Young Men in the first place, at least when recruited. 'Armed servants' was what the term Sergeants-at-arms meant (from : serviens). Sergeants-at-arms were law-officers.

7. Which of these words does NOT derive from the Latin root procurator, or procuratio ?

Answer: curate

The word curator is 'procurator' minus the prefix pro. Proctor is a shortened form of it. Both words are linked with the idea of being in charge of, having to take care of. 'By proxy' means via 'procuratio' or via a deputy. A curate was someone who had the cura or care of an ecclesiastical 'entity' or 'unit'.

8. What was a neighbour originally?

Answer: a nearby farmer

No, no neighing farmers involved. -bour in neighbour is the same word as German Bauer, Dutch boer and English boor. Neigh=nearby.

9. What does ombudsman literally mean?

Answer: the one that is aware of both sides

From Norse.

10. Which of these proper names literally means horse-lover?

Answer: Philip

According to a dubious interpretation syphilis means sus-phile or swine-lover. A Veronese physician wrote about one Syphilis, a shepherd who had caught syphilis. The book was in fact autobiographical. Philomel is a lover of melodies, not a honey-lover. Hippolytus got killed by his own horses but it is the name Philipp (or phil-hippos) which means 'horselover'. Compare: hippodrome: circus for horse-lovers.

Source: Author flem-ish

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