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Classical Literacy

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. 'To infinity &' to continue forever & without limit






2. 1






3. 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)






4. The messenger god; god of thieves and travelers; son of Zeus; invented the lyre; escorted people to the Underworld when they died






5. 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)






6. 'And you & Brutus?' famous last words of Julius Caesar as the Senate members assassinated him; Brutus was supposed to be a friend of his & but had a hand in the killing






7. 50






8. 'boyish &' 'childlike' (from puer- boy)






9. A town on the western coast of Italy destroyed by the eruption of Mount Vesuius in AD 79






10. Gladiator who led an uprising of slaves against the Romans in the 1st c. BC






11. 'for the time being' - temporary






12. Characterized by sitting & inactive (from sedet- to sit)






13. The norms or values of a society






14. 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






15. Temple devoted to Athena; located on the Acropolis of Athens






16. 'before midday &' in the morning & before noon






17. 'great work'






18. 'Against' & used to show Who is up against who in sports matches & legal battles & etc.






19. Usually referring to Julius Caesar & the Roman dictator Who was assassinated on the Ides of March (March 15th) 44 BCE






20. God of wine and revelry; son of Zeus and Semele






21. God of the sea






22. Good-humored & jolly (ancient astrologers thought that the planet Jupiter fostered cheerfulness)






23. Prince of Troy Who was killed by Achilles in the Iliad; Achilles tied Hector's dead body to the back of his chariot and dragged it around the city walls three times






24. 'horn of plenty' a symbol of food and abundance






25. 'Thus passes the glory of the world.' i.e. 'Worldly things are fleeting.'






26. Characterized by sitting & inactive (from sedet- to sit)






27. Out of her curiosity & she opened a box containing all the bad things in the world; she put the lid on just in time & so that hope did not escape from the box & too






28. The norms or values of a society






29. Goddess of victory






30. Was chosen by Zeus to settle the argument of Who was the fairest of the goddesses; he chose Aphrodite because she promised him the most beautiful woman in the world if he chose her






31. 'note well' i.e. take note






32. A bundle of wooden sticks and an axe blade that the attendants of Roman magistrates carried; symbolized the magistrates' power to inflict capital punishment






33. Daughter of Demeter; kidnapped by Hades to make her his queen






34. A polis (city-state) in Greece & center of art and philosophy & named after Athena (its patron goddess); the Acropolis was the hill in Athens where many temples (including the Parthenon & the temple to Athena) were located






35. Half-man & half-goat creatures; companions of Pan and Dionysus






36. Eurydice died on their wedding day. Orpheus went down to the Underworld to bring her back. Hades agreed & on the condition that Eurydice would follow behind Orpheus on their way up to the mortal world and he couldn't check to make sure She was behind






37. 'That is' used for further explanation: 'in other words...'






38. A system created by the Romans which carried water over long distances






39. A mural painted directly onto wet plaster (fresco means 'fresh' in Italian)






40. Kingdom in Asia Minor which fought against Greece in Homer's Iliad






41. Religion in Which many gods are worshipped (from Greek poly 'many' and theoi 'gods')






42. Festival of Saturn held on December 17th & during which social roles were temporarily reversed (slaves enjoyed relaxed discipline & etc)






43. 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






44. Goddess of the hearth






45. 'The state in which'






46. 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






47. Prince of Troy Who was killed by Achilles in the Iliad; Achilles tied Hector's dead body to the back of his chariot and dragged it around the city walls three times






48. Sweet-sounding (literally 'flowing like honey')






49. 'I'






50. One of the seven hills of Rome & south of the forum; the site of the imperial palace