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101 Phrases Trivia Questions That Will Have You Doubting The English Language

A chip on your shoulder. A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush. Spill the beans. There are so many common phrases used in our day-to-day life. Not every one of them makes sense when you look at them. Why do we talk about “killing two birds” when we are getting two things done at once? Or we say we are “under the weather” when we are not feeling well.

This set of phrases trivia questions and answers will have you just passing by the skin of your teeth. Make sure not to play the blame game when someone comes out on top of the trivia leaderboard.

Are you not quite done with the trivia? Check out our spelling, grammar, and even our English trivia quizzes to further test your knowledge of the English language.

In Cockney rhyming slang, what is meant by ‘plates of meat’?

Beat

Sheet

Feet

Heat

Which of these phrases implies anger?

Clench your fists

Drag your feet

Break a leg

Turn up your nose

Complete the advertising slogan: ‘This is not just food, this is … food’?

McDonalds

M & S

Lidl

Asda

A pint of beer is 2 units of alcohol and costs ÂŁ3.20. Men should drink no more than 14 units a week. How much would this cost in beer?

24.2

22.4

21.7

28

Which N means ‘it does not follow’?

Nouveau riche

Non sequitur

Noblesse oblige

Nada

Which M means ‘through my own fault’?

Mot juste

Modus operandi

Mea culpa

Merci bien

If a man is described as being ‘a bit of a Don Juan’, what sort of person are they?

Weakling

Womaniser

Ruthless businessman

Bodybuilder

At which sporting occasion was the phrase ‘They think it’s all over, it is now’ first uttered?

2005 Ashes Lords Test

1966 World Cup Final

2009 Wimbledon Final

1997 Grand National

From which ancient language do we get the phrases ‘status quo’ and ‘quid pro quo’?

Hebrew

Persian

Latin

Greek

Can I have a P please Bob’ could be heard on which popular TV game show?

Krypton Factor

Blockbusters

Blankety Blank

Celebrity Squares

A farmer has 50 sheep. 20 sheep have one lamb, 15 sheep have twins, 8 have triplets and the rest have none. How many lambs does he have?

54

50

64

74

From which literary work does the phrase ‘One foot in the grave’ come?

A Christmas Carol

Gulliver’s Travels

The Duchess of Malfi

Macbeth

If someone describes you as a ‘salad dodger’, what should you do?

Lose weight

Find work

Get your hair cut

Use less make up

Which G means ‘free of charge’?

Grand mal

Gracias

Gravitas

Gratis

If a man is ‘pointing Percy at the porcelain’, what is he doing?

Having a wee

Shaving

Playing golf

Chatting up a woman

If someone is described as a ‘real Pollyanna’, what do they have?

Very high intelligence

A dark secret

Red hair

An optimistic outlook

In slang, what sort of people are ‘in the Andrew’?

Pensioners

Greengrocers

Sailors

Pregnant women

What does the abbreviation OTT stand for?

Open Talk Trading

One Two Three

Over The Top

Omelettes Take Time

If your French companion says ‘Bon appetit’, what are you about to do?

Have sex

Leave

Eat

Drink a martini

Complete the advertising slogan: ‘… gives a meal man-appeal’?

Lurpak

M & S

Birds Eye

Oxo

Which C means ‘that’s life’?

Costa brava

C’est la vie

Caveat emptor

Carpe diem

A frisbee traveled 28m when it was first thrown and 41m the second time it was thrown. What was the total distance traveled?

99

69

89

79

Which M means ‘the exact word’?

Momento

Modus vivendi

Mea culpe

Mot juste

From which ancient language do we get the phrases ‘inter alia’ and ‘nota bene’?

Latin

Hebrew

Greek

Aramaic

If you have a ‘skin like a rhinoceros’, which of these best describes you?

Happy-go-lucky

Quick to anger

Insensitive to insults

Ready for a challenge

If you are ‘taking the mickey’ out of somebody, what are you doing?

Removing their appendix

Asking for money

Teasing them

Picking their pocket

Complete the phrase: Look before you …

Jump

Step

Leap

Spring

According to the 1984 film ‘Who ya gonna call?’?

Aliens

Ghostbusters

Patrick Swayze

Indiana Jones

If you are ‘au fait’ about something, how are you?

Knowledgeable

Clueless

Scared

Uncertain

Following what sort of action might you use the phrase ‘et tu, Brute’ to a friend?

Invitation

Indifference

Betrayal

Mistake

Compete the well-known phrase: How long is a piece of …?

Twine

Rope

String

Cotton

What does the phrase ‘raison d’etre’ mean?

Reason for existing

At liberty

To infinity

In the fresh air

According to the proverb, what is ‘as good as a feast’?

A KitKat

Lard

Breakfast

Enough

In Australian slang, what is a ‘dickless Tracey’?

Policewoman

Sportswoman

Homosexual

Hairdresser

In Swedish, what is the meaning of the expression ‘God eftermiddag’?

No thank you

Get well soon

Good afternoon

Happy birthday

In the well known saying ‘He who can, does, he who cannot…’ does what?

Works

Eats

Runs

Teaches

A ferry travelled 44km from the shore before the captain turned left and 35km to its final destination. What was the total distance travelled?

89

109

99

79

In modern slang, if someone says ‘I haven’t got a Scooby’, what are they?

Broke

Single

Clueless

Homeless

From where does the phrase ‘Often a bridesmaid, but never a bride’ come?

Book of Common Prayer

Liz Taylor’s mum

Mouthwash slogan

Much Ado About Nothing

If you are ‘compos mentis’, which of these are you definitely NOT?

Mad

Deaf

Old

Blind

Which of these phrases implies discretion?

Click your fingers

Hold your tongue

Lick your lips

Shrug your shoulders

Claire leaves home at 8am, travels 40 minutes to the airport, waits half a hour and takes a 3 hour flight. When does she arrive?

12.15pm

11.50am

noon

12.10pm

Complete the well-known phrase: As keen as …

Pepper

Vinegar

Pickle

Mustard

A haircut costs ÂŁ20 with the stylist and ÂŁ12 with the junior. How much would I save on my monthly haircut each year by using the junior?

84

96

90

92

A frisbee traveled 40m when it was first thrown and 8m the second time it was thrown. What was the total distance traveled?

68

48

78

58

According to the proverb, what do too many cooks do?

Make a meal

Argue

Spoil the broth

Eat a lot

Complete the advertising slogan: ‘Drinka … milka day’?

Glassa

Bottla

Lotta

Pinta

A ferry travelled 25km from the shore before the captain turned left and 49km to its final destination. What was the total distance travelled?

104

84

74

94

In Swedish, what is the meaning of the expression ‘God kvall’?

Happy birthday

I love you

Get well soon

Good evening

From which religion does the saying ‘Even the wishes of an ant reach to heaven’ come?

Islam

Hinduism

Sikhism

Shinto

The number of hours that were left in the day was one-third of the number of hours already passed. How many hours were left in the day?

8 hours

0.08333333333

5 hours

6 hours

According to the proverb, what is the ‘mother of invention’?

Mrs Edison

Boredom

Necessity

Experience

In Cockney rhyming slang, what is a ‘whistle and flute’?

Suit

Boot

Root

Coot

According to the proverb, what can’t you make out of a sow’s ear?

Anything at all

An old dog

A silk purse

A bacon sandwich

Which of these phrases implies rejection?

Turn up your nose

Prick up your ears

Raise your eyebrows

Lick your lips

Complete the phrase: As cool as a …

Lettuce

Cucumber

Radish

Tomato

A frisbee traveled 10m when it was first thrown and 44m the second time it was thrown. What was the total distance traveled?

74

84

54

64

Mark works from 9am to 4pm for ÂŁ9 an hour and is paid in cash. He spends ÂŁ5 on a pizza on the way home. How much has he got left?

53

63

58

68

In the phrase ‘beyond the Pale’, meaning unacceptable, what is the ‘Pale’?

Boundary in Ireland

White flag of surrender

Community water source

Latin word for a grave

Which A means ‘in the open air’?

Antipasti

Al fresco

Al dente

A la mode

A frisbee traveled 11m when it was first thrown and 11m the second time it was thrown. What was the total distance traveled?

42

52

32

22

Finish the proverb: ‘Manners maketh the…’

Dinner

Bed

Difference

Man

Complete the Persian proverb: If fortune turns against you, even … breaks your tooth

Jelly

Angel delight

Custard

Blancmange

According to the proverb, how do ‘Still waters run’?

Slowly

Dark

Silent

Deep

Complete the simile: as blind as a …?

Post

Mole

Bat

Snake

If the ‘Third World’ denotes the world’s developing countries, which area was denoted by the phrase ‘Second World’?

The Americas

Australasia

Scandinavia

Communist bloc

Which of these means ‘in the open air’?

A la mode

Al dente

Al fresco

A capella

According to the nursery rhyme, which bells ask ‘When will you pay me?’?

Shoreditch

St.Martin’s

Old Bailey

St.Clement’s

If someone tells you to ‘take a pew’, what should you do?

Swallow your medicine

Sit down

Make an exit

Do a dance

Which C means ‘seize the day’?

Carpe diem

Carte blanche

Cannelloni

Caveat emptor

In its original form, which of these expressions meant to ‘rub down the chestnut horse’?

Curry favour

Drink the stirrup cup

Have a nightmare

Ride roughshod

If you ‘dig in your heels’, what are you being?

Stubborn

Concerned

Miserable

Angry

Complete the well-known phrase: As sober as a …

Linesman

Magistrate

Judge

Referee

A ferry traveled 12km from the shore before the captain turned left and 23km to its final destination. What was the total distance traveled?

55

45

65

35

A ferry travelled 49km from the shore before the captain turned left and 39km to its final destination. What was the total distance travelled?

98

88

118

108

Au fait – is a foreign phrase in common use in the English language – what does it mean?

Not there

Familiar with

To do

To have

Which of these phrases implies surprise?

Blow your nose

Turn up your nose

Drag your feet

Raise your eyebrows

According to the nursery rhyme, on what day of the week was the child reputed to have ‘far to go’ born?

Monday

Wednesday

Tuesday

Thursday

According to the proverb, ‘the early bed gets …’ what?

Tired by noon

The worm

A mate

All the grubs

According to the proverb, with what is ‘the road to hell paved’?

Good intentions

Laziness and deceit

Bad thoughts

Cracked paving slabs

Complete the well-known proverb: ‘Many hands make …’?

An audience

Light work

A lot of clocks

A mess

If people are said to be ‘as thick as thieves’, what are they?

Very stupid

About to rob a bank

Ugly as sin

Very friendly

Which P means ‘one who is not welcome’?

Persona non grata

Per capita

Parmesan

Pret-a-porter

In Australia, who are referred to as ‘ducks and geese’?

Lesbians

Homosexuals

Americans

The police

If you’re ‘up a gum-tree’, what’s your situation?

At school

About to get married

On holiday

In difficulty

Complete the saying: As fresh as a …

Tulip

Daisy

Buttercup

Rose

In Cockney rhyming slang, if you fancied a ‘Ruby Murray’, what sort of restaurant should you be heading for?

Indian

Mexican

French

Italian

If you’re ‘three sheets to the wind’, what have you done?

Fallen overboard

Sold your car

Overslept

Drunk too much

A frisbee traveled 16m when it was first thrown and 9m the second time it was thrown. What was the total distance traveled?

35

55

45

25

According to the nursery rhyme, what do you mix with half a pound of tuppenny rice?

Half a pound of treacle

A handful of beansprouts

Chopped coriander

Milk and jam

If you ‘drop the pilot’, what are you getting rid of?

Trustworthy advisor

Long-term lover

Valuable item

Unwanted pet

A ferry travelled 48km from the shore before the captain turned left and 34km to its final destination. What was the total distance travelled?

102

82

112

92

From which source does the phrase ‘separate the sheep from the goats’ come?

Aesop

Bible

Shakespeare

Dickens

A frisbee traveled 26m when it was first thrown and 1m the second time it was thrown. What was the total distance traveled?

57

37

27

47

If something is to ‘come under the hammer’, it will be what…?

Repaired

Eaten

Auctioned

Flattened

Complete the saying: The early bird catches …

The worm

Cold

Flies

Fish

A ferry travelled 48km from the shore before the captain turned left and 26km to its final destination. What was the total distance travelled?

84

94

74

104

MPs are allowed to claim ÂŁ5000 a year towards rent. Maria claims ÂŁ600 a month. How much does she have to pay back at the end of the year?

5000

7700

720

2200

According to the proverb ‘Go to bed with the lamb, and rise with the…’ what?

Owl

Milkman

Candle

Lark

Which C means approximately?

Coupe

Circa

Cliche

Coupon

For how long did the Financial Times use the slogan ‘No FT; No comment’?

25 years

27 years

21 years

23 years

You can do better

Not bad

Great!

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