Christmas Quiz 2017

Christmas candles @ mum’s-2

When Gran was alive, during our family gatherings we used to play Christmas games. Gran particularly loved general knowledge quizzes, but with 5 generations ranging from the late nineties down to a three year old, it posed something of a challenge. So each year I devised multiple choice questions and everyone played in pairs, which gave even the youngest a chance of answering correctly. Gran is no longer with us, but if you happen to gather in a multi-generational mash-up to celebrate Christmas perhaps this will pass some time between opening presents and tucking into the seasonal feast.

1. What is another name for the alligator pear?
a) Kumquat                b) Avocado
c) Boysenberry          d) Pineapple

2. What did Marylebone, Ranleigh and Vauxhall have in common in the 18th century?
a) All were land owned by aristocratic families
b) All had churches on them
c) All were pleasure gardens
d) All were sites of gibbets for public hangings

3. Who taught Alice to dance the Lobster Quadrille?
a) The Lobster          b) The Walrus
c) The Carpenter      d) The Mock Turtle

4. Die/dice, man/men are examples of irregular plurals in English. Just how many of them are there?
a) 7                             b) 10
c) 13                           d) 18

5. Who is the heir apparent to the British throne?
a) Prince William    b) Prince Andrew
c) Prince Charles     c) Princess Anne

6. On which day did God make the sun, the moon and the stars?
a) The second day    b) The third day
c) The fourth day     d) The fifth day

7. Which artist expressed a wish to eat his wife when she died?
a) Pablo Picasso       b) Paul Gauguin
c) Paul Cézanne       d) Salvador Dali

8. What is blennophobia?
a) Fear of the colour white       b) Fear of slime
c) Fear of ice                                d) Fear of silence

9. Quarantine is isolation because of sickness. What else can it be?
a) A forty-day study sabbatical available to university dons
b) A small island in the Pacific, named by James Cooke
c) The name of the flag, warning of infection aboard, flown by the Royal Navy
d) A sort of red apple

10. Who cut off Samson’s hair?
a) Delilah                   b) Salome
c) Jezebel                   d) Naomi

11. Linnaeus gave the name “food of the gods” to which drink?
a) Brandy                   b) Coffee
c) Chocolate              d) Wine

12. Over how many days is the decathlon held?
a) 10                            b) 5
c) 4                              d) 2

13. Who claimed to be able to recognize 140 different forms of tobacco ash?
a) Dr. Watson                  b) Sherlock Holmes
c) Lord Peter Whimsey  d) Hercule Poirot

14. What is a group of swine called?
a) Herd                      b) Sounder
c) Drift                       d) Wallow

15. What does the name Thermopylae, the site of a famous battle, actually mean?
a) Hot waters           b) Red bush
c) Hot gates              d) Place of the Geysers

16. How many lines are there in a limerick?
a) 3                             b) 4
c) 5                             d) 14

17. Whose best friend is Barney Rubble?
a) Mickey Mouse     b) Buzz Lightyear
c) Scooby Doo          d) Fred Flintstone

18. How did the tank get its name?
a) When Lord Kitchener described it as looking “like a damnable tank.”
b) It is acronym for Terrestrial Automotive Navigable Kinesthesmobile
c) For security reasons they were sent to France in crates labelled WATER TANKS
d) It was a nickname coined by the troops that stuck

19. What is the value of the gold spot in the centre of an archery target?
a) 5                              b) 9
c) 10                            d) 25

20. What is added to gin and vermouth to make a drink called a Gibson?
a) Strawberry            b) Orange
c) Onion                     d) Cucumber

ANSWERS

1. What is another name for the alligator pear?
a) Kumquat              b) Avocado
c) Boysenberry         d) Pineapple

2. What did Marylebone, Ranleigh and Vauxhall have in common in the 18th century?
a) All were land owned by aristocratic families
b) All had churches on them
c) All were pleasure gardens
d) All were sites of gibbets for public hangings

3. Who taught Alice to dance the Lobster Quadrille?
a) The Lobster        b) The Walrus
c) The Carpenter    d) The Mock Turtle

4. Die/dice, man/men are examples of irregular plurals in English. Just how many of them are there?
a) 7                            b) 10
c) 13                          d) 18

5. Who is the heir apparent to the British throne?
a) Prince William   b) Prince Andrew
c) Prince Charles    d) Princess Anne

6. On which day did God make the sun, the moon and the stars?
a) The second day   b) The third day
c) The fourth day     d) The fifth day

7. Which artist expressed a wish to eat his wife when she died?
a) Pablo Picasso        b) Paul Gauguin
c) Paul Cézanne        d) Salvador Dali

8. What is blennophobia?
a) Fear of the colour white b) Fear of slime
c) Fear of ice                         d) Fear of silence

9. Quarantine is isolation because of sickness. What else can it be?
a) A forty-day study sabbatical available to university dons
b) A small island in the Pacific, named by James Cooke
c) The name of the flag, warning of infection aboard, flown by the Royal Navy
d) A sort of red apple

10. Who cut off Samson’s hair?
a) Delilah                 b) Salome
c) Jezebel                 d) Naomi

11. Linnaeus gave the name “food of the gods” to which drink?
a) Brandy                 b) Coffee
c) Chocolate            d) Wine

12. Over how many days is the decathlon held?
a) 10                           b) 5
c) 4                             d) 2

13. Who claimed to be able to recognize 140 different forms of tobacco ash?
a) Dr. Watson                  b) Sherlock Holmes
c) Lord Peter Whimsey d) Hercule Poirot

14. What is a group of swine called?
a) Herd                     b) Sounder
c) Drift                      d) Wallow

15. What does the name Thermopylae, the site of a famous battle, actually mean?
a) Hot waters           b) Red bush
c) Hot gates              d) Place of the Geysers

16. How many lines are there in a limerick?
a) 3                              b) 4
c) 5                              d) 14

17. Whose best friend is Barney Rubble?
a) Mickey Mouse      b) Buzz Lightyear
c) Scooby Doo           d) Fred Flintstone

18. How did the tank get its name?
a. When Lord Kitchener described it as looking “like a damnable tank.”
b. It is acronym for Terrestrial Automotive Navigable Kinesthesmobile
c. For security reasons they were sent to France in crates labelled WATER TANKS
d. It was a nickname coined by the troops that stuck

19. What is the value of the gold spot in the centre of an archery target?
a) 5                              b) 9
c) 10                            d) 25

20. What is added to gin and vermouth to make a drink called a Gibson?
a) Strawberry            b) Orange
c) Onion                     d) Cucumber

Wishing you a Happy Christmas and a healthy, successful 2018.

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