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






2. 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.






3. Literally refers to the heel of Achilles (a character from the Iliad who killed Hector)


4. 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






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






6. 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






7. 'Thus passes the glory of the world.' i.e. 'Worldly things are fleeting.'






8. The male head of a Roman family






9. A mural painted directly onto wet plaster (fresco means 'fresh' in Italian)






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






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






12. 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






13. The people in control of the Italian peninsula before Rome began to spread






14. '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.






15. Goddess of the hearth






16. The river surrounding the Underworld






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






18. 'A slip of the tongue'






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






20. 1000






21. 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






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






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






24. God of the sea






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






26. 'To the point of sickness' - doing/saying something over and over until everyone is sick and tired of it






27. 'A rare bird' - something unique/rare






28. 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.






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






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






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






32. River that runs through the city of Rome






33. Maze under the palace of Palace of Minos at Crete & where the Minotaur (half man & half bull) was thought to have been imprisoned






34. Gladiator who led an uprising of slaves against the Romans in the 1st c. BC






35. 'great-souled & high-minded'






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






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






38. Sailed with the Argonauts to take the Golden Fleece






39. 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






40. 'firm ground/solid earth'






41. 5






42. 'A slip of the tongue'






43. 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






44. 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






45. The plebs were the free but non-aristocratic citizens of Rome; today & plebeian means 'of a low class'






46. The highest political office in the Roman Republic; 2 were elected every year






47. 'doctor/teacher of philosophy' - an advanced academic degree






48. 'All-knowing'






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






50. 'peace be with you'