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






2. 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






3. 100






4. The oracle of Apollo; people visited the oracle for guidance and predictions of the future






5. Roman officials who were charged with protecting the people (the plebeians) from oppression; they were sacrosanct & meaning no one could harm them






6. 'in the whole &' 'as a whole &' 'totally'; ex: The suggestions were adopted in toto.






7. The food of the gods; some believe it kept them immortal






8. King of Ithaca who came up with the idea of using the Trojan horse to defeat the city of Troy; hero of the Odyssey






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






10. 'in memory of'






11. The garment which signified a Roman man's citizenship






12. The ferryman for the river Styx going into the underworld






13. Athenian prince who killed the Minotaur






14. The ferryman for the river Styx going into the underworld






15. A member of one of the original aristocratic families of Rome; 'aristocratic'






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






17. The technical biological term for the human species

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18. The god of the sky; created the Titans with Gaia & Mother Earth






19. 'great work'






20. A series of three wars between Rome and Carthage & a Phoenician city in Northern Africa & for control of the Mediterranean (264-146 BC)






21. 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






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






23. A king Who was tortured in the Underworld by having water and grapes within his reach & but the water and grapes pulled away whenever he went to take drink or a bite






24. Twin brothers & raised by a wolf; Romulus killed Remus and founded Rome






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






26. 'from the library of' used as an inscription on a bookplate to show the name of the book's owner: ex libris Mark Twain.






27. God of the sea






28. 10






29. Carthaginian general who attacked Italy by crossing the Italian Alps in the 2nd Punic War; He was eventually defeated by Scipio at the Battle of Zama






30. Volcano which erupted in AD 79 and destroyed Pompeii and Herculaneum






31. A picture made from small bits of glass or pottery






32. 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)






33. After midday/noon






34. 50






35. 'for the time being' - temporary






36. 'note well' i.e. take note






37. 'for the sake of an example' - abbreviation used when providing an example






38. In early mythology & the resting place of heroes; the later mythology & where good people went in the afterlife






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






40. 1






41. 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.






42. 'I refuse &' used by the president of the US to stop any bill he sees unfit from passing






43. The three-headed dog that guarded the gates of the Underworld






44. God of metallurgy (metal working); married to Aphrodite






45. '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.






46. The daughter of king Minos of Crete & who helped Theseus escape from the labyrinth after he killed the minotaur






47. Inventor who created the Labyrinth where the Minotaur lived






48. 'per year'






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






50. Another name for Zeus/Jupiter