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Quizzes

Find the answers by using OED Online!

Contents

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 phrase girl power, 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 Simple Search option, and then Language Names in the drop down list, and enter your search term in the box)

  7. Name 4 words which entered English in 1985

    (Hint: choose the Simple Search option, and then First Cited Date in the drop down list)

  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 Simple 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)

Need help? Take a look at the [on-site link] answers!

Quiz two

  1. What was the original meaning of the adjective "nice"?
  2. When was the noun "text message" first recorded in English?
  3. Why was the song containing the word "supercalifragilisticexpialidocious" the subject of a law suit?
  4. How many words appearing in the OED end in "ology"?
  5. Which words of Hindi origin, and relating to food, entered English before 1900?
  6. What is the name for the part of an animal's back which it can't reach to scratch?
  7. How many words appearing in OED came into English during the sixties?
  8. Which noun first used by Jack Kerouac, and included in the OED, came into English between 1900 and 1950?

Need help? Take a look at the [on-site link] answers!

Quiz three

  1. What is a sniffer program?

    (Hint: enter the search term in the Find Word box)

  2. What was the original meaning of silly?

    (Hint: the oldest meaning of a word is defined first in the OED)

  3. Which word was first recorded in the TV programme Brookside?

    (Hint: choose the Simple Search option in the bottom left hand corner of the screen, and then First Cited Work in the drop down list, and enter your search term in the box)

  4. From which language does juggernaut originate?

    (Hint: search for the word, and click the Etymology button when you are in the entry)

  5. Which 6-letter word for a wading bird starts with J and ends with U?

    (Hint: go to Find Word and use the wildcard ? to denote a missing letter)

  6. Which is the longest word in the OED which starts super and ends ious?

    (Hint: go to Find Word and 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 Simple Search, and then Language Names in the drop down list, and enter your search term in the box)

  9. Name 4 words which entered English in 1995

    (Hint: choose the Simple Search option, and then First Cited Date 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 Simple 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 Names, Definitions, and First Cited Date as appropriate from the drop down list)

Need help? Take a look at the [on-site link] answers!