Easy
General Knowledge
Everyday Origins
Where ordinary words and objects actually came from.
Sample question
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The English word "salary" comes from the Latin word for which substance?
General Knowledge
A little of everything, from the everyday to the delightfully obscure.
General knowledge is the pleasant business of knowing a little about a lot. It is the category for the facts that do not belong anywhere in particular: why we say what we say, where ordinary objects came from, the small pieces of history hiding inside everyday words. These quizzes lean towards the surprising rather than the obscure, so you will usually find that you half-knew the answer and simply never had a reason to think about it. The explanations are where the fun is, because most of these facts have a story attached that is better than the fact itself. Start here if you are not sure what you are in the mood for.
Difficulty mix
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Everyday Science You Half Know
Why the sky is blue, why ice floats, and other things everyone has heard explained once.
2 easy
4 medium
6–7 min each
6 quizzes in General Knowledge
Medium
General Knowledge
Signs, Symbols and Standards
The everyday symbols and conventions nobody explicitly teaches you.
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The symbol & is called what?
Medium
General Knowledge
Collective Nouns and Curious Names
A murder of crows, a parliament of owls, and the proper names for ordinary things.
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A group of ravens is traditionally called what?
Medium
General Knowledge
Firsts, and Who Actually Got There
The first of various things, and the people who usually get the credit instead.
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The first successful vaccine was developed against which disease?
Medium
General Knowledge
How the World Agreed on a Metre
Where our units came from, and the arbitrary decisions still built into them.
Sample question
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The metre was originally defined as a fraction of what?
Easy
General Knowledge
Everyday Science You Half Know
Why the sky is blue, why ice floats, and other things everyone has heard explained once.
Sample question
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Why does the sky appear blue?
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Questions
About General Knowledge quizzes
How many General Knowledge quizzes are there?
6 published quizzes in this subject, 60 questions in total. Every one is researched, written and checked by hand.
How hard are they?
The mix here is 2 easy and 4 medium. Difficulty is about how obscure the answers are, not how fast you have to be — there is no timer on any quiz.
How long does one take?
About 6 minutes on average, ranging from 6 to 7. Playing every general knowledge quiz would take roughly 1 hour.
Which one should I start with?
"Everyday Science You Half Know" is the gentlest way in — 10 questions, about 6 minutes, rated easy.
Do I need an account?
No. Every quiz is free and playable straight away. An optional free account only saves your scores across devices.
Do you explain the answers?
Yes — every question has a short explanation of why the right answer is right, shown the moment you answer, whether you got it or not.