Word origins aren't always cut and dry. Do you think you've got what it takes to determine the origin of these 12 common English words? Take this quiz and find out!
Question 1/12
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The word "salary" originated with _____.
A French word meaning "compensation"
A Latin word meaning "salt money"
A German word meaning "what is due"
Question 2/12
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Though the English word stomach derives from a Greek word stoma, that Greek word stoma itself does not mean stomach but:______________.
Mouth
Intestine
Belly
Question 3/12
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The word "curfew" originated with _____.
A Spanish phrase meaning "dog"
An Italian phrase meaning "deadline"
A French phrase meaning "cover the fire"
Question 4/12
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From which language did the English borrow the word poltergeist?
Dutch
German
Norwegian
Question 5/12
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Which of these everyday words was borrowed into English from Latin?
Fork
Spoon
Knife
Question 6/12
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The word "gossip" originated with _____.
An Old English word meaning "godparent"
A French word meaning "woman's talk"
A Spanish word meaning "speech"
Question 7/12
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The word "ketchup" originated with _____.
An Old English term meaning "beet sauce"
An Italian term meaning "tomato sauce"
A Chinese term meaning "fish sauce"
Question 8/12
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The word tomato has been in English since the 1600s. Which language was it borrowed from?
Portugese
Narragansett
Spanish
Question 9/12
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Which of the following is a borrowing from Italian?
Aficionado
Macaroni
Office
Question 10/12
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The word "ballot" originated with _____.
A Spanish term for "choice"
An Italian term for "small ball or pebble"
A Latin term for "leather bag"
Question 11/12
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The word "hazard" originated with _____.
An Arabic term meaning "dice"
A Chinese word meaning "final act"
A Japanese word meaning "useless part"
Question 12/12
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It’s a traditional part of the British breakfast today, but which language was marmalade borrowed into English from?
Portugese
French
German
Based on the results of this quiz, you are word wise! Okay, so you might not know the origins of the most common words in English. However, you still managed to use pre-fixes and context clues to determine the origins of a few words. We think that makes you pretty smart!
C+, Word Wise
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Right!
Based on the results of this quiz, you are an origin ace! Well done friend! While many struggle to determine the origins of the most commonly used English words, you thrived! You correctly guessed more than half of the questions on this test. We think you deserved a round of applause!
B+, Origin Ace
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Right!
Based on the results of this quiz, you are a total word whiz! Congratulations! You aced this tricky word origins quiz with ease! It's clear that you know the English language well. More than that, you know the common words of other languages too!
A+, Word Whiz
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Right!
1
The word "salary" originated with _____.
A French word meaning "compensation"
A Latin word meaning "salt money"
A German word meaning "what is due"
2
Though the English word stomach derives from a Greek word stoma, that Greek word stoma itself does not mean stomach but:______________.
Mouth
Intestine
Belly
3
The word "curfew" originated with _____.
A Spanish phrase meaning "dog"
An Italian phrase meaning "deadline"
A French phrase meaning "cover the fire"
4
From which language did the English borrow the word poltergeist?
Dutch
German
Norwegian
5
Which of these everyday words was borrowed into English from Latin?
Fork
Spoon
Knife
6
The word "gossip" originated with _____.
An Old English word meaning "godparent"
A French word meaning "woman's talk"
A Spanish word meaning "speech"
7
The word "ketchup" originated with _____.
An Old English term meaning "beet sauce"
An Italian term meaning "tomato sauce"
A Chinese term meaning "fish sauce"
8
The word tomato has been in English since the 1600s. Which language was it borrowed from?
Portugese
Narragansett
Spanish
9
Which of the following is a borrowing from Italian?
Aficionado
Macaroni
Office
10
The word "ballot" originated with _____.
A Spanish term for "choice"
An Italian term for "small ball or pebble"
A Latin term for "leather bag"
11
The word "hazard" originated with _____.
An Arabic term meaning "dice"
A Chinese word meaning "final act"
A Japanese word meaning "useless part"
12
It’s a traditional part of the British breakfast today, but which language was marmalade borrowed into English from?
Portugese
French
German
