SUBJECTS
|
BROWSE
|
CAREER CENTER
|
POPULAR
|
JOIN
|
LOGIN
Business Skills
|
Soft Skills
|
Basic Literacy
|
Certifications
About
|
Help
|
Privacy
|
Terms
Search
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. Temple devoted to Athena; located on the Acropolis of Athens
rostra
Parthenon
Iliad
toga
2. Sweet-sounding (literally 'flowing like honey')
pax vobiscum
mellifluous
verbatim
Elysian Fields/Elysium
3. A member of one of the original aristocratic families of Rome; 'aristocratic'
et al./ et alii
persona non grata
patrician
polytheism
4. The people in control of the Italian peninsula before Rome began to spread
homo sapiens- 'wise man'
Etruscans
Mt. Vesuvius
carpe diem
5. Greek god of nature; had the torso and head of a man & but the legs and horns of a goat
M.D./Medicinae Doctor
vice versa
Pan
atrium
6. 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
pontifex maximus
Romulus and Remus
Homer
tribune
7. 'per head' 'per person'
Elysian Fields/Elysium
magnanimous
per capita
Punic Wars
8. Good-humored & jolly (ancient astrologers thought that the planet Jupiter fostered cheerfulness)
jovial
Hera/Juno
Achilles' heel
agenda
9. Goddess of childbirth; married to Zeus; queen of the gods
terra firma
Hera/Juno
per capita
Hermes/Mercury
10. 'note well' i.e. take note
M.D./Medicinae Doctor
labor vincit omnia
the Fates
N.B./nota bene
11. Victorious athletes & generals & and emperors wore crowns of made of the branches of the laurel tree to symbolize their victory; now & 'laurels' refer to someone's achievements
Ariadne
labyrinth
laurels
mea culpa
12. Temple devoted to Athena; located on the Acropolis of Athens
Parthenon
Orpheus & Eurydice
puerile
Gorgons
13. 'Always prepared'
V (Roman numeral)
Cyclops
semper paratus
ex libris
14. Literally refers to the heel of Achilles (a character from the Iliad who killed Hector)
15. Maze under the palace of Palace of Minos at Crete & where the Minotaur (half man & half bull) was thought to have been imprisoned
M (Roman numeral)
rostra
labyrinth
etc./et cetera
16. 'The end'
Aegean Sea
finis
Cronus/Saturn
Iliad
17. '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
persona non grata
Zeus/Jupiter
ego
valedictorian
18. The wife of Odysseus; a model of faithfulness to one's husband
satyr
Apollo/Apollo
Helen
Penelope
19. The garment which signified a Roman man's citizenship
agenda
papyrus
toga
Ares/Mars
20. 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
Caesar
Augustus
atrium
21. Temple in Rome dedicated to all the Roman gods
Aegean Sea
laurels
Pantheon
labor vincit omnia
22. 'Word for word'
Colosseum
Cerberus
verbatim
Ares/Mars
23. 'my fault' ; tua culpa -'your fault'
Pegasus
semper paratus
mea culpa
ad nauseam
24. Titan who had to hold up the heavens on his shoulders as punishment for rebelling against Zeus
agenda
Atlas
Pandora
Pan
25. 'Always prepared'
D (Roman numeral)
P.S./post scriptum
terra incognita
semper paratus
26. 'for the time being' - temporary
finis
paterfamilias
Mt. Vesuvius
pro tempore
27. A bundle of wooden sticks and an axe blade that the attendants of Roman magistrates carried; symbolized the magistrates' power to inflict capital punishment
Aegean Sea
Hestia/Vesta
the Fates
fasces
28. A mural painted directly onto wet plaster (fresco means 'fresh' in Italian)
Golden Fleece
status quo
p.o./ per os
fresco
29. 'one out of many' - found on most US minted coins and the back of the dollar bill
valedictorian
papyrus
Saturnalia
e pluribus unum
30. Religion in Which many gods are worshipped (from Greek poly 'many' and theoi 'gods')
polytheism
ego
e.g./exempli gratia
A.D./anno Domini
31. King of Ithaca who came up with the idea of using the Trojan horse to defeat the city of Troy; hero of the Odyssey
Demeter/Ceres
Odysseus/Ulysses
Tartarus
Hector
32. 'Higher!' -- the state motto of New York
Priam
Sparta
Excelsior!
the furies
33. God of the Underworld/Tartarus
Odysseus/Ulysses
Priam
agenda
Hades/Pluto
34. 'from the library of' used as an inscription on a bookplate to show the name of the book's owner: ex libris Mark Twain.
Tantalus
ex libris
labor vincit omnia
Athens/Acropolis
35. 'To infinity &' to continue forever & without limit
ad infinitum
lapsus linguae
M.D./Medicinae Doctor
fresco
36. 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
Pandora
Penelope
Paris
Odysseus/Ulysses
37. Site of the Apollo's oracle at Delphi; home of the Muses
Mt. Parnassus
Pantheon
Zeus/Jupiter
D (Roman numeral)
38. God of war
ad infinitum
vice versa
finis
Ares/Mars
39. 'under penalty' a written order for a person to come testify in court
pontifex maximus
Perseus & Medusa
Spartacus
sub poena
40. Half-man & half-goat creatures; companions of Pan and Dionysus
Theseus
Persephone/Proserpina
satyr
epic
41. Athenian prince who killed the Minotaur
Theseus
Spartacus
via
Styx
42. The three-headed dog that guarded the gates of the Underworld
V (Roman numeral)
status quo
Tiber
Cerberus
43. 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
Odysseus/Ulysses
Pompeii
terra incognita
Tantalus
44. A state of disorganized matter from which the gods and the world were created
fasces
Dionysus/Bacchus
quid pro quo
Chaos
45. Sea to the west of Greece; named after King Aegeus after he drowned himself in the sea thinking his son Theseus was dead
Aegean Sea
in loco parentis
SPQR
ad nauseam
46. Roman officials who were charged with protecting the people (the plebeians) from oppression; they were sacrosanct & meaning no one could harm them
tribune
A.D./anno Domini
M (Roman numeral)
agora/forum
47. 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
Arachne
Mt. Parnassus
apple of discord
et tu & Brute?
48. Half-man & half-goat creatures; companions of Pan and Dionysus
iota
Medea
satyr
terra incognita
49. Roman officials who were charged with protecting the people (the plebeians) from oppression; they were sacrosanct & meaning no one could harm them
pontifex maximus
M.D./Medicinae Doctor
tribune
atrium
50. 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
vs./versus
Trojan Horse
the Fates
Parthenon