5 SETS
General knowledgeBritish Knowledge Quiz
British history and places, Authors, books and familiar names, Traditions and cultural trivia.
100 questions · 4 levels↗General knowledge / 100 QUESTIONS
Language and Words Quiz
Do you know your word meanings, expressions and world languages? This language and words quiz brings together 100 questions on vocabulary and the ways people communicate. The rounds mix English word knowledge with greetings, translations and language trivia from around the world.
Set 1 of 5
Your round. Your level.
Start answering below, or jump straight to a harder level.
Start at question 1. Play all 20, from Easy to Very hard.
Changing the set or starting level begins a fresh round. Your first answer counts; correct answers appear in green.
Question 1 of 200 / 20 answered
Easy
One point per correct answer. Answers lock once chosen.
Report this question ↗Opens your email app. Include a source if you can.
ROUND COMPLETE / THE VERDICT
YOUR SUBJECT / YOUR NEXT CHALLENGE
What’s in this language quiz?
Each of the five sets contains 20 questions, with five questions at each difficulty. Choose Easy for the full round, Medium for 15 questions, Hard for 10 or Very hard for five.
Topics in the mix
- Word meanings and vocabulary
- Idioms and expressions
- World languages and translations
Hosting a quiz? Open the question and answer list below, choose a set and print separate player and answer sheets. Read the quiz-night instructions.
Language and Words Quiz questions and answers · quizmaster view
Spoilers ahead. Pick a set for your quiz night, then read the questions aloud or print separate question and answer sheets. One point per correct answer.
Set 1 · Language & words
- EasyHow many letters are in the English alphabet?
Answer: 26
- EasyWhat is Cuba's official, most widely spoken language?
Answer: Spanish
- EasyWhich of these words refers to something made, distributed, or sold illegally?
Answer: Bootleg
- EasyMilch is an adjective that can be put before which of the following words?
Answer: cow
- EasyThe name of Michigan is a French adaptation of the Ojibwe word meaning what?
Answer: Large water
- MediumWhat name represents the letter "M" in the NATO phonetic alphabet?
Answer: Mike
- MediumWhat is the official language in the Principality of Monaco?
Answer: French
- MediumWhat does the word bog mean?
Answer: Spongy ground
- MediumWho invented the writing system of the Cherokee language?
Answer: Sequoyah
- MediumThe term lachanophobia means a fear of what?
Answer: vegetables
- HardWhat is the meaning of Indiana?
Answer: Land of the Indians
- HardWhich word means a practitioner of the martial art of Okinawan origin, karate?
Answer: Karateka
- HardIn Australia the expression silvertail is used as a synonym of which of these?
Answer: Wealthy
- HardWhat character was once considered to be the 27th letter of the alphabet?
Answer: Ampersand
- HardThe name Ohio is derived from an Iroquois Indian word meaning what?
Answer: Large River
- Very hardWhat is the English equivalent of the German phrase Woher kommen Sie?
Answer: Where do you come from?
- Very hardShalom aleichem and Salam alaikum are common greetings in Hebrew and Arabic, respectively. What is the meaning of both?
Answer: Peace to you
- Very hardWhat is the most widely spoken language in Papua New Guinea?
Answer: Tok Pisin (Pidgin English)
- Very hardWhat is the literal meaning of the phrase sado or chado, which refers to the traditional Japanese tea ceremony?
Answer: The way of tea
- Very hardThe words "bungalow" and "shampoo" originate from the languages of which country?
Answer: India
Set 2 · Language & words
- EasyWhat is the romanized Russian word for "winter"?
Answer: Zima
- EasyWhat does the word principal mean?
Answer: Main
- EasyWhat is another word for tome?
Answer: work
- EasyWhich of the following terms means to recede?
Answer: Ebb
- EasyWhich language is NOT Indo-European?
Answer: Hungarian
- MediumWhat is the English word for the Spanish word fiesta ?
Answer: party
- MediumWhich of the following languages is a highly inflected language?
Answer: Russian
- MediumWhich of these words means gloomy, dark, sadly dim?
Answer: tenebrous
- MediumWhat term means fear of accidents?
Answer: Dystychiphobia
- MediumWhat does the word Christmas mean?
Answer: Mass of Christ
- HardWhat is the missing part of the proverb, The ... wounds more than a lance?
Answer: Tongue
- HardWhich of the following is Kenyas motto, that means Lets work together in Swahili?
Answer: Harambee
- HardWhich of the following is an eponym meaning a traitor to his country?
Answer: A quisling
- HardThe Japanese word baitoh (pronounced BUY-toe) means part time job and is adapted from which language?
Answer: German
- HardIf the world were a village of 1000 people, how many would speak Mandarin as their first language?
Answer: 132
- Very hardThe word "abulia" means which of the following?
Answer: The inability to make decisions
- Very hardEsperanto is the official language of which country?
Answer: It is not a language of any country.
- Very hardWhat is the literal translation of the word pranahara, used commonly by some people to refer to the traditional Indian sweets called Sandesh?
Answer: Heart stealer
- Very hardSanta Claus is a mispronunciation of the word Sinterklaas, by the English settlers of New York. The word Sinterklaas traces its origins to which country?
Answer: Netherlands
- Very hardWhat does the Latin word felicitas mean?
Answer: Happiness
Set 3 · Language & words
- EasyWhich of these word means a large group?
Answer: bevy
- EasyHow many English words (not proper nouns) begin with dw?
Answer: 4
- EasyThe phrase Love is blind was coined by Shakespeare and appears in which of the following plays?
Answer: Two Gentlemen of Verona
- EasyWhich of these words means highly ornate?
Answer: baroque
- EasyWhat is the meaning of the German word bald?
Answer: soon
- MediumWhat word means fear of newness or novelty?
Answer: Cainophobia
- MediumWhich one of these words means to soil or defile?
Answer: besmirch
- MediumWhat word means a defamatory falsehood published for political effect?
Answer: Roorback
- MediumWhat is the most widely spoken language in Mozambique?
Answer: Portuguese
- MediumWhich day of the week does the Spanish word ‘martes’ denote?
Answer: Tuesday
- HardWhat is the literal translation of the Japanese word geisha?
Answer: Performing artist
- HardThe phrase "accident waiting to happen" is an example of what type of figure of speech?
Answer: Idiom
- HardWhat is the meaning of the German word der Sekt?
Answer: the sparkling wine
- HardSik Jo Fan Mei means have you eaten yet?. In which country it is used as a greeting?
Answer: China
- HardWhich of these is the name of a Japanese system of alternative medicine, literally meaning "finger pressure"?
Answer: Shiatsu
- Very hardWhat is the meaning of the phrase Nani Mau, the name of the beautiful and enormous botanical gardens on the island of Hawaii?
Answer: Forever beautiful
- Very hardAcademicians have debated the origins of La Jollas name, but it is generally accepted that the name comes from a variation of the Spanish la joya which means what?
Answer: The jewel
- Very hardWhat is the meaning of the anthropology term Pithecanthropus in Greek?
Answer: ape man
- Very hardWhat does the Latin phrase "Veni, vidi, vici" translate into English?
Answer: I came, I saw, I conquered
- Very hardThe Greek word hamartia, used in Aristotles Poetics, means what?
Answer: A fatal flaw
Set 4 · Language & words
- EasyWhat word refers to an emperor of Japan?
Answer: Mikado
- EasyWhat is the Italian word for "tomato"?
Answer: Pomodoro
- EasyWhat is the romanized Japanese word for "university"?
Answer: Daigaku
- EasyWhich German word means knowledge in English?
Answer: Kenntniss
- EasyWhich of these is the official language of Algeria?
Answer: Arabic
- MediumWhat English word means to "think deeply"?
Answer: Contemplate
- MediumWhat is the meaning of sapiens?
Answer: wise, reasonable
- MediumThe people of which Balkan country do not use a Cyrillic alphabet?
Answer: Greece
- MediumWhat word means either cheerful and optimistic or having good digestion?
Answer: Eupeptic
- MediumWhat major language is one of the official languages in New Zealand?
Answer: English
- HardExcluding the Falkland Islands, how many countries in Central and South America do not have Spanish listed as their official language?
Answer: 4
- HardWhat language was adopted as official by the government of Iraq?
Answer: Kurdish and Arabic
- HardWhat is the meaning of the German word die List?
Answer: the cunning, slyness
- HardWhich of the following words best fits this sentence: The next ____ will be out soon for everyone to read.?
Answer: issue
- HardIt is generally accepted that the name of the ice cream dessert sundae originated from which of the following words?
Answer: Sunday
- Very hardThe word "aprosexia" means which of the following?
Answer: The inability to concentrate on anything
- Very hardWhat proverb could this refer to: Elementary sartorial techniques initially applied obviate the need for repetitive similar actions to the square of three?
Answer: A stitch in time saves nine
- Very hardWhat is the romanized Chinese word for "airplane"?
Answer: Feiji
- Very hardWhat does the word hadeharia refer to?
Answer: the practice of constantly using the word hell in speaking
- Very hardWhich word refers to the ancient Greek songs, performed by a chorus in honor of the Greek god, Dionysus?
Answer: dithyramb
Set 5 · Language & words
- EasyWhat country is called Sverige in its native language?
Answer: Sweden
- EasyWhich of these languages is closest to Italian?
Answer: Romanian
- EasyWhich citys name literally means merchants harbour?
Answer: Copenhagen
- EasyWhich one of these words means cheerful and optimistic?
Answer: buoyant
- EasyIn which language is Hola used as a greeting?
Answer: Spanish
- MediumOklahoma means “Home of the Red Man” in which Native American language?
Answer: Choctaw
- MediumWhat European language is not related to any other language in the world?
Answer: Basque
- MediumWhat is the official language spoken within the territory of the French Republic?
Answer: French
- MediumWhich one of these words means pleased or satisfied with oneself?
Answer: complacent
- MediumWhich of these terms means fear of pins and needles?
Answer: Belonephobia
- HardIn which of the following countries is Dutch not an official language?
Answer: Indonesia
- HardWhich two countries in Central and South America have English as their official language?
Answer: Belize and Guyana
- HardWhat are the official languages in the linguistically and culturally diverse community of Israel?
Answer: Hebrew and Arabic
- HardWhat other name is used for the language known as Siksika and Pikanii, which is spoken in North America?
Answer: Blackfoot
- HardWhat is the meaning of the German word die Art?
Answer: the kind, manner, or type
- Very hardWhat is the meaning of the Greek word théatron from which the word theatre is derived?
Answer: a place for viewing
- Very hardWhat is the meaning of the world kalling?
Answer: fortunetelling based on what variety of cabbage a blindfolded person picks
- Very hardWhat is the romanized Arabic word for "moon"?
Answer: Qamar
- Very hardOriginally another word for poppy, coquelicot is a shade of what?
Answer: Red
- Very hardThe word "astasia" means which of the following?
Answer: The inability to stand up
Questions adapted from Open Trivia Database and OpenTriviaQA, under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected, filtered and arranged into fixed rounds. Sources & editorial notes.
KEEP THE GOOD QUESTIONS COMING