Quizzes

Find the answers by using OED Online!

Quiz one

  1. What was the original meaning of skyscraper? (Hint: the oldest meaning of a word is defined first in the OED)
  2. When did mobile phone first enter the English language? (Hint: check the quotations under the definition to find the earliest recorded use)
  3. Which 6 letter word for an animal starts with Z and ends with Y? (Hint: use the wildcard ? to denote a missing letter)
  4. How many different types of phobia feature in the OED? (Hint: use the wildcard * before phobia to find all words ending in phobia)
  5. Who, according to the OED, was the first person to use the word cold-hearted, and when? (Hint: check the first quotation to find the author and date)
  6. Name 4 words which have an Arabic origin (Hint: choose the Advanced Search option, and then type ‘Arabic’ into the ‘Language of Origin’ box or use ‘Language’ in the drop down list)
  7. Name 4 words which entered English in 1985 (Hint: choose the Advanced Search option, and use the ‘Date of Entry’ box)
  8. What does the word robot mean in South Africa? (Hint: scroll through the entry to find the answer)
  9. “Beware the jubjub bird” is a quote from which book? (Hint: choose the Advanced Search option, and then Quotation Text in the drop down list)
  10. Which word means a type of dance and a type of sauce? (Hint: choose the Advanced Search option and do an AND search for both the terms in Definitions)

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Quiz two

  1. What was the original meaning of the adjective “nice”? (Hint: the oldest meaning of the word is defined first in the OED)
  2. When was the noun “text message” first recorded in English? (Hint: check the date of the first citation)
  3. Why was the song containing the word “supercalifragilisticexpialidocious” the subject of a law suit? (Hint: the answer can be found in the entry for this word)
  4. How many words appearing in the OED end in “ology”? (Hint: use the wildcard * before ology to find all the words ending in ‘ology’)
  5. Which words of Hindi origin, and relating to food, entered English before 1900? (Hint: choose the Advanced Search option. Type ‘Hindi’ into the ‘Language of Origin’ box, ‘Food and Cooking’ into the ‘Subject’ box, and ‘-1900’ into the ‘Date of Entry’ box)
  6. What is the name for the part of an animal’s back which it can’t reach to scratch? (Hint: choose the Advanced Search option and do an AND search for two relevant terms in ‘Definitions’)
  7. How many words appearing in OED came into English during the sixties? (Hint: choose the Advanced Search option and use the ‘Date of Entry’ box)
  8. Which noun first used by Jack Kerouac, and included in the OED, came into English between 1900 and 1950? (Hint: choose the Advanced Search option and use the ‘First Quotation, Date of Entry, and Part of Speech boxes)

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Quiz three

  1. What is a sniffer program? (Hint: enter the search term in the Quick Search box)
  2. What was the original meaning of silly? (Hint: the oldest meaning of a word is defined first in the OED)
  3. “I could just murder a cup of tea” is a quote from which TV series? (Hint: choose the Advanced Search option and select Quotation from the drop down list)
  4. From which language does juggernaut originate? (Hint: search for the word, and look at the Etymology section when you are in the entry)
  5. Which 6-letter word for a wading bird starts with J and ends with U? (Hint: use the wildcard ? to denote a missing letter)
  6. Which is the longest word in the OED which starts super and ends ious? (Hint: use the wildcard * to denote one or more missing letters)
  7. Which band, according to the OED, were the first to use the phrase cool Britannia, and when? (Hint: when in the entry, check the first quotation to find the author and date)
  8. Name 4 words which have an Urdu origin (Hint: choose the Advanced Search, and then Language in the drop down list, and enter your search term in the box or select Urdu in the ‘Language of Origin’ box)
  9. Name 4 words which entered English in 1995 (Hint: choose the Advanced Search option, and then First Quotation in the drop down list)
  10. “Don’t be such a big girl’s blouse!” is a quote from which TV series? (Hint: choose the Advanced Search option, and then Quotation Text in the drop down list)
  11. Which word has meant dissolute, effeminate, and elegant over the course of time? (Hint: choose the Advanced Search option and do an AND search for all the terms having chosen Definitions from the drop down list)
  12. Which Malay word for a garment was first recorded in English in 1834? (Hint: choose the Advanced Search option and do an AND search for all the terms having chosen Language, Definitions, and First Quotations Date as appropriate from the drop down list)

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