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Test your basic knowledge |
Classical Literacy
Start Test
Study First
Subject
:
literacy
Instructions:
Answer 50 questions in 15 minutes.
If you are not ready to take this test, you can
study here
.
Match each statement with the correct term.
Don't refresh. All questions and answers are randomly picked and ordered every time you load a test.
This is a study tool. The 3 wrong answers for each question are randomly chosen from answers to other questions. So, you might find at times the answers obvious, but you will see it re-enforces your understanding as you take the test each time.
1. Twin brothers & raised by a wolf; Romulus killed Remus and founded Rome
Romulus and Remus
agora/forum
cave canem
Demeter/Ceres
2. 5
Aphrodite/Venus
V (Roman numeral)
Tartarus
Pegasus
3. Daughter of Demeter; kidnapped by Hades to make her his queen
labor vincit omnia
Persephone/Proserpina
sine qua non
sic semper tyrannis
4. 'for the sake of an example' - abbreviation used when providing an example
atrium
Ge/Gaea
e.g./exempli gratia
Demeter/Ceres
5. A bundle of wooden sticks and an axe blade that the attendants of Roman magistrates carried; symbolized the magistrates' power to inflict capital punishment
terra firma
per capita
paterfamilias
fasces
6. 'The state in which'
e pluribus unum
Sisyphus
status quo
Nike/Victoria
7. 'boyish &' 'childlike' (from puer- boy)
tribune
Zeus/Jupiter
puerile
summa cum laude
8. Literally & the apple that Eris (goddess of strife) threw in front of Hera & Aphrodite & and Athena to cause a dispute over Who was the fairest; figuratively & anything which causes a dispute
Sparta
pontifex maximus
apple of discord
Perseus & Medusa
9. Kingdom in Asia Minor which fought against Greece in Homer's Iliad
Colosseum
Golden Fleece
post mortem
Troy
10. 'Word for word'
verbatim
veto
fasces
Ph.D./Philosophiae Doctor
11. 'All-knowing'
Paris
Tartarus
X (Roman numeral)
omniscient
12. The 9 goddesses who looked after the arts and inspired men in those arts
M.D./Medicinae Doctor
e.g./exempli gratia
Paris
muses
13. Perseus slayed Medusa the Gorgon
Hermes/Mercury
Icarus & Daedalus
Perseus & Medusa
tribune
14. A serpent-like monster with many heads and poisonous breath; when one head got cut off & it grew two more; killed by Hercules as his second labor
Pandora
I (Roman numeral)
Hydra
atrium
15. A series of three wars between Rome and Carthage & a Phoenician city in Northern Africa & for control of the Mediterranean (264-146 BC)
Delphic Oracle
Punic Wars
Etruscans
Hercules/Heracles
16. The people in control of the Italian peninsula before Rome began to spread
Hercules/Heracles
Etruscans
Aphrodite/Venus
Daedalus
17. 1000
P.S./post scriptum
per capita
M (Roman numeral)
Paris
18. 'peace be with you'
Saturnalia
pax vobiscum
I (Roman numeral)
mores
19. 'All-knowing'
omniscient
Etruscans
V (Roman numeral)
status quo
20. The ninth letter of the Greek alphabet (i); commonly used in the phrase 'not one iota &' meaning 'not one bit'
Mt. Parnassus
rostra
iota
Ariadne
21. 'Time flies/flees'
tempus fugit
Punic Wars
pax vobiscum
Hephaestus/Vulcan
22. One of the seven hills of Rome & south of the forum; the site of the imperial palace
Palatine Hill
quid pro quo
the Odyssey
papyrus
23. A series of three wars between Rome and Carthage & a Phoenician city in Northern Africa & for control of the Mediterranean (264-146 BC)
Perseus & Medusa
Punic Wars
Atlas
in toto
24. 'doctor/teacher of philosophy' - an advanced academic degree
e.g./exempli gratia
Ph.D./Philosophiae Doctor
Pandora
labor vincit omnia
25. The three goddesses who determine a person's life: when he will be born & how long he will live & and when he will die; one sister spins the thread of life & the second measures out a certain length & and the third cuts it at the end of the person's
the Fates
omniscient
etc./et cetera
Hermes/Mercury
26. A mural painted directly onto wet plaster (fresco means 'fresh' in Italian)
muses
mea culpa
fresco
Etruscans
27. Maze under the palace of Palace of Minos at Crete & where the Minotaur (half man & half bull) was thought to have been imprisoned
Daedalus
ad nauseam
labyrinth
post mortem
28. Literally 'the greatest bridge' -- the chief priest of Roman religion (later & the emperor took on this role); now used to refer to the Pope & the head of the Catholic Church
muses
pontifex maximus
fasces
papyrus
29. Son of Zeus; had to complete 12 labors to regain favor with the gods after killing his family; when he died & he became a god
Hercules/Heracles
Athena/Minerva
omniscient
errare humanum est
30. 'under penalty' a written order for a person to come testify in court
Hermes/Mercury
veni & vidi & vici
sub poena
Colosseum
31. The three-headed dog that guarded the gates of the Underworld
p.o./ per os
rara avis
veni & vidi & vici
Cerberus
32. 'firm ground/solid earth'
terra firma
Ge/Gaea
Penelope
et al./ et alii
33. One-eyed children of Ouranos/Uranus and Gaea (Mother Earth); sided with Zeus during the war with the Titans; were helpers of the smith-god Hephaestus
Cyclops
Ge/Gaea
mellifluous
e.g./exempli gratia
34. God of the sea
Poseidon/Neptune
Delphic Oracle
Troy
Minotaur
35. Female monsters who had snakes for hair and whose horrifying gaze could turn a man to stone if he looked at them (Medusa was one of the Gorgons)
Delphic Oracle
labor vincit omnia
Theseus
Gorgons
36. 'Against' & used to show Who is up against who in sports matches & legal battles & etc.
Aegean Sea
vs./versus
patrician
Iliad
37. 'The other way around'
vice versa
magnanimous
aqueduct
Hydra
38. The three goddesses who determine a person's life: when he will be born & how long he will live & and when he will die; one sister spins the thread of life & the second measures out a certain length & and the third cuts it at the end of the person's
Eros/Cupid
the Fates
mentor
tempus fugit
39. 'one out of many' - found on most US minted coins and the back of the dollar bill
Pantheon
Achilles' heel
Hannibal
e pluribus unum
40. The garment which signified a Roman man's citizenship
Athens/Acropolis
toga
terra incognita
P.S./post scriptum
41. 'This for that &' a fair trade
quid pro quo
Parthenon
Sicily
Cerberus
42. Another name for Zeus/Jupiter
Jove
agenda
sic semper tyrannis
Troy
43. 'With highest honors' graduating from college in the highest grade scale
pontifex maximus
summa cum laude
D (Roman numeral)
Cronus/Saturn
44. God of love and desire; son of Aphrodite
Eros/Cupid
fresco
L (Roman numeral)
status quo
45. God of metallurgy (metal working); married to Aphrodite
Hercules/Heracles
D (Roman numeral)
Hephaestus/Vulcan
mosaic
46. 'A rare bird' - something unique/rare
rara avis
ex officio
SPQR
Circus Maximus
47. 'firm ground/solid earth'
terra firma
Nike/Victoria
mores
D (Roman numeral)
48. 'in the whole &' 'as a whole &' 'totally'; ex: The suggestions were adopted in toto.
via
Jove
in toto
post mortem
49. Temple devoted to Athena; located on the Acropolis of Athens
Athena/Minerva
Parthenon
X (Roman numeral)
Cyclops
50. 'I refuse &' used by the president of the US to stop any bill he sees unfit from passing
veto
Uranus
Hermes/Mercury
mea culpa