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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. 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






2. 'in the year of the Lord &' designating the time period after Christ's birth






3. River that runs through the city of Rome






4. 'peace be with you'






5. Queen of Sparta Who was promised to Paris by Aphrodite for choosing her (Aphrodite) as the fairest goddess; Helen was already married to Menelaus and her kidnapping began the Trojan War






6. The golden wool of a ram sought by Jason and the Argonauts






7. 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






8. King punished in Tartarus by having to roll a stone up a hill continuously for eternity; when he reached the top & the stone rolled to the bottom again






9. 'Thus always & to tyrants.' Allegedly said by Brutus during the assassination of Caesar. John Wilkes Booth also shouted it after shooting President Lincoln. It is now the motto of Virginia.






10. The 200 year period of peace which began under the rule of Augustus






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






12. First emperor of the Roman Empire; adopted son of Julius Caesar; member of the 2nd Triumvirate; also known as Octavian






13. City-state in ancient Greece known for its powerful army; fought against Athens in the Peloponnesian Wars






14. 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






15. 'An unwelcome person' - used in diplomacy to indicate a person Who is barred from entering a certain country






16. 'The one who says farewell' -- the student with the highest grade point average & Who is chosen to give a speech at the end of graduation






17. Home of the Greek gods






18. A modern day race of 26.2 miles; from Marathon in Greece & the scene of a victory over the Persians in 490 BC; the modern race is based on the tradition that a messenger ran from Marathon to Athens (26 miles) with the news.






19. Greek island in the Ionian Sea; the home of Odysseus






20. Goddess of grain & the harvest & and the seasons; mother of Persephone/Proserpina






21. Epic poem written by Home chronicling the Trojan War






22. 'great work'






23. 'per year'






24. 'from the office &' 'by right of office' - used to refer to someone Who is a member of a group (a board & committee & council & etc.) because they hold another office/position






25. Through & by way of (from via- road & way)






26. 'per head' 'per person'






27. 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






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






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






30. 'my fault' ; tua culpa -'your fault'






31. Greek god of nature; had the torso and head of a man & but the legs and horns of a goat






32. Goddess of love






33. Greek island in the Ionian Sea; the home of Odysseus






34. A teacher Who is like a parent; comes from the Mentor & Odysseus' old friend & whom he left in charge of his son Telemachus when he went off to the Trojan War






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






36. Titan who had to hold up the heavens on his shoulders as punishment for rebelling against Zeus






37. King of Troy during the Trojan War; father of Hector and Paris; begged Achilles to give his son Hector's body back to be properly buried (Achilles had been dragging it around the city)






38. Sea to the west of Greece; named after King Aegeus after he drowned himself in the sea thinking his son Theseus was dead






39. Speaker's platform in the forum & which was decorated with the prows of ships the Romans captured in war (rostrum means 'beak & prow of a ship')






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






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






42. 'All-knowing'






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






44. 'After death'






45. 'Always prepared'






46. The 9 goddesses who looked after the arts and inspired men in those arts






47. A long poem that narrates the deeds of a hero or the history of a nation & e.g. Homer's Iliad and Odyssey






48. Spirits who carry out curses and torture for wrongdoing toward one's family member (s)






49. The king of the gods; god of thunder and lightning






50. God of the Underworld/Tartarus