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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. 'All-knowing'






2. Athenian prince who killed the Minotaur






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






4. The norms or values of a society






5. Homer's epic poem about Odysseus & kind of Ithaca & trying to find his way home from the Trojan War






6. Goddess of the hunt






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






8. 'great-souled & high-minded'






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






10. God of the sea






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






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






13. Refers to an action or condition necessary for something to happen






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. Lived in the Labyrinth; fed off of Athenian youths; killed by Theseus






16. 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.






17. God of the sea






18. 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






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






20. A material prepared in ancient Egypt from the pithy stem of a water plant & used in sheets throughout the ancient Mediterranean world for writing or painting on






21. 'This for that &' a fair trade






22. Large island off the southeast coast of Italy; home of Mt. Etna & a huge volcano; where the Cyclopes lived in the Odyssey






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






24. The river surrounding the Underworld






25. 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)






26. Home of the Greek gods






27. 'in memory of'






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






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






30. Titan best known for stealing fire from the gods and giving it to humans; He was punished by being chained to a rock and having his liver eaten by a bird everyday






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






32. 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






33. Figuratively 'secretly.' Aphrodite gave her son Eros a rose. Eros gave it to Harpocrates & the god of silence & to ensure that his mother's love affairs remained a secret.






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






35. Winged horse which flew from the neck of Medusa the Gorgon after Perseus cut off her head






36. '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






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






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






39. 'The things that must be done' - a to-do list






40. 'great work'






41. 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






42. 'With highest honors' graduating from college in the highest grade scale






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






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






45. 'And others'






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






47. Used on documents & coins & monuments & etc. as an official signature of the Roman government






48. Mother Earth; the wife of Uranus & the sky; she gave birth to the Titans & the Cyclopes & and the Hundred-Handed Ones






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






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