SUBJECTS
|
BROWSE
|
CAREER CENTER
|
POPULAR
|
JOIN
|
LOGIN
Business Skills
|
Soft Skills
|
Basic Literacy
|
Certifications
About
|
Help
|
Privacy
|
Terms
|
Email
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. City-state in ancient Greece known for its powerful army; fought against Athens in the Peloponnesian Wars
C (Roman numeral)
Cerberus
Sparta
the Fates
2. 10
iota
errare humanum est
D (Roman numeral)
X (Roman numeral)
3. Epic poem written by Home chronicling the Trojan War
sine qua non
Iliad
Delphic Oracle
semper fidelis
4. The Underworld; in early mythology & everyone went to Tartarus after they died; in later mythology & only bad people went to Tartarus after they died
rara avis
Delphic Oracle
A.M./ante meridiem
Tartarus
5. God of metallurgy (metal working); married to Aphrodite
Cronus/Saturn
rara avis
e.g./exempli gratia
Hephaestus/Vulcan
6. Goddess of childbirth; married to Zeus; queen of the gods
sic semper tyrannis
Achilles' heel
Carthage
Hera/Juno
7. 'per day'
per diem
sic transit gloria mundi
terra incognita
sub poena
8. Roman officials who were charged with protecting the people (the plebeians) from oppression; they were sacrosanct & meaning no one could harm them
tribune
Caesar
semper fidelis
errare humanum est
9. The 9 goddesses who looked after the arts and inspired men in those arts
Icarus & Daedalus
muses
aqueduct
Romulus and Remus
10. The technical biological term for the human species
Warning
: Invalid argument supplied for foreach() in
/var/www/html/basicversity.com/show_quiz.php
on line
183
11. 'from the library of' used as an inscription on a bookplate to show the name of the book's owner: ex libris Mark Twain.
ex libris
Tartarus
Pompeii
Ides of March
12. 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)
ex libris
Delphic Oracle
laurels
Priam
13. A long poem that narrates the deeds of a hero or the history of a nation & e.g. Homer's Iliad and Odyssey
sine qua non
lapsus linguae
epic
aqueduct
14. God of wine and revelry; son of Zeus and Semele
Dionysus/Bacchus
Hephaestus/Vulcan
Odysseus/Ulysses
Styx
15. The 200 year period of peace which began under the rule of Augustus
Uranus
Pax Romana
post mortem
verbatim
16. Goddess of childbirth; married to Zeus; queen of the gods
mea culpa
Hera/Juno
Ariadne
Palatine Hill
17. The ninth letter of the Greek alphabet (i); commonly used in the phrase 'not one iota &' meaning 'not one bit'
iota
Uranus
Palatine Hill
sic transit gloria mundi
18. The food of the gods; some believe it kept them immortal
ambrosia and nectar
Paris
the furies
Zeus/Jupiter
19. 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
tempus fugit
atrium
laurels
Hydra
20. 'boyish &' 'childlike' (from puer- boy)
Arachne
polytheism
puerile
Paris
21. 'in memory of'
P.M./post meridiem
marathon
in memoriam
quid pro quo
22. 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.
Tiber
Homer
pontifex maximus
sub rosa
23. 'I refuse &' used by the president of the US to stop any bill he sees unfit from passing
Golden Fleece
per annum
errare humanum est
veto
24. Usually referring to Julius Caesar & the Roman dictator Who was assassinated on the Ides of March (March 15th) 44 BCE
Caesar
Trojan Horse
Arachne
Paris
25. 'horn of plenty' a symbol of food and abundance
Hermes/Mercury
fasces
Tiber
cornucopia
26. 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
Hannibal
Achilles' heel
M.D./Medicinae Doctor
pax vobiscum
27. Used on documents & coins & monuments & etc. as an official signature of the Roman government
sedentary
plebeian
Hestia/Vesta
SPQR
28. 'my fault' ; tua culpa -'your fault'
Achilles' heel
mea culpa
fresco
Orpheus & Eurydice
29. River that runs through the city of Rome
cave canem
Homer
Tiber
Mt. Olympus
30. 'An unwelcome person' - used in diplomacy to indicate a person Who is barred from entering a certain country
puerile
magnum opus
persona non grata
Prometheus
31. 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
Cyclops
per capita
Icarus & Daedalus
sub rosa
32. Through & by way of (from via- road & way)
cave canem
the furies
Hephaestus/Vulcan
via
33. Sea to the west of Greece; named after King Aegeus after he drowned himself in the sea thinking his son Theseus was dead
Athena/Minerva
X (Roman numeral)
Aegean Sea
Chaos
34. 'note well' i.e. take note
labor vincit omnia
N.B./nota bene
Aphrodite/Venus
the Fates
35. 'After death'
Jason
Hera/Juno
post mortem
Jason
36. 'Thus passes the glory of the world.' i.e. 'Worldly things are fleeting.'
Pegasus
Mt. Parnassus
sic transit gloria mundi
cave canem
37. 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
Golden Fleece
quid pro quo
Cerberus
mentor
38. 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.
sub rosa
Tartarus
Chaos
Athens/Acropolis
39. 1
cave canem
I (Roman numeral)
quid pro quo
terra incognita
40. 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)
Tantalus
C (Roman numeral)
Cyclops
Gorgons
41. Festival of Saturn held on December 17th & during which social roles were temporarily reversed (slaves enjoyed relaxed discipline & etc)
C (Roman numeral)
Jason
Saturnalia
Romulus and Remus
42. 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
papyrus
Hercules/Heracles
Ides of March
Dionysus/Bacchus
43. 'The state in which'
status quo
sedentary
finis
Cronus/Saturn
44. The norms or values of a society
cornucopia
mores
the Fates
Palatine Hill
45. The Underworld; in early mythology & everyone went to Tartarus after they died; in later mythology & only bad people went to Tartarus after they died
papyrus
marathon
i.e./id est
Tartarus
46. 'This for that &' a fair trade
Troy
Persephone/Proserpina
cornucopia
quid pro quo
47. God of love and desire; son of Aphrodite
rostra
lapsus linguae
Eros/Cupid
marathon
48. 'A rare bird' - something unique/rare
rara avis
Circus Maximus
Colosseum
Hydra
49. 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
plebeian
Hercules/Heracles
M.D./Medicinae Doctor
Hera/Juno
50. Icarus was the son of Daedalus who flew too close to the sun with the wings his father made him from wax and feathers & and fell to his death
Cerberus
agora/forum
fresco
Icarus & Daedalus