Word Origins
What''s the good word? And more importantly, how did it find its way into the English language? Try this fun trivia game on your etymological trivia fans!
15 questions · Published November 9, 2020
Trivia questions (5 of 15)
- Multiple Choice
1. Prior to the 1880s, what word meant "clumsy" but eventually became a synonym for "huge" thanks to the name of a famous elephant?
Jumbo the Elephant was a popular attraction at the London Zoo, but became an international star after being purchased by showman P.T. Barnum.
- Multiple Choice
2. What writer is responsible for coining the words "luggage", "bump", "eyesore", and "bedazzled"?
- Multiple Choice
3. What word for a common monthly expense comes from the French words for "death pledge"?
- Multiple Choice
4. Which of these insults first appeared in print in a book by Dr. Seuss?
The nerd was a creature in Dr. Seuss's 1950 book, "If I Ran the Zoo." It took on its current slang-meaning the following year.
- Multiple Choice
5. What synonym for "evil" is derived from the Latin for "of the left", as left-handed people were considered untrustworthy?
10 more questions in the full game
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