Quiz Questions

Hundreds of general knowledge questions for ESL lessons!

  1. How many squares are there on a standard chessboard? 64

  2. Which talk-show hostess appeared in The Color Purple? Oprah Winfrey

  3. What is the smallest & shallowest ocean in the world? The Arctic

  4. The acronym NASA stands for what? National Aeronautics & Space Administration

  5. The Gobi Desert is mostly situated in which country? Mongolia

  6. Which was the first song by the Beatles to go to No. 1 in the US? “I Want To Hold Your Hand”

  7. If a coffee bean is darker, will its caffeine content be higher or lower? Lower

  8. What is the only rock regularly eaten by humans? Salt

  9. On what day of the week do the most auto accidents happen? Saturday

  10. What is only one kind of fruit that has its seeds on the outside? Strawberry

  11. What’s the cheapest and most popular fruit in the USA? bananas

  12. What kind of bird is often seen running along the roads and highways of the southern USA and Mexico… hence its name? Roadrunner

  13. Which part of a beetle’s body is a skeleton? The outside

  14. The hard white material of elephant tusks is called what? Ivory

  15. What is the most popular fruit in the world? Mango

  16. What is the biggest animal to have inhabited the Earth? Blue Whale

  17. What did people in the Middle Ages (476-1500s AD) throw at the bride and groom (instead of rice)? Eggs

  18. What do you call a group of Donkeys? A pace, drove, or herd

  19. A giraffe’s tongue is what color? Black

  20. What nation was ejected from the Organization of American States in 1962? Cuba

  21. What continent has the least number of flowering plants? Antarctica

  22. What national holiday in Mexico has picnickers eating chocolate coffins and sugar skulls? The Day of the Dead

  23. What was the first planet to be discovered using the telescope (in 1781)? Uranus

  24. How many U.S. states border the Gulf of Mexico? Five

  25. Who averaged one patent for every three weeks of his life? Thomas Edison

  26. What continent is cut into two fairly equal halves by the Tropic of Capricorn? Australia

  27. What is the world’s longest & busiest railway? The Trans-Siberian Railway (9,289 km long)

  28. What is the minimum number of musicians a band needs to be considered a “big band”? Ten

  29. Name the world’s largest island.? Greenland

  30. What is the diameter of Earth? 12, 742 km (Almost 8,000 miles)

  31. What is the capital city of Spain? Madrid

  32. Which country is Prague in? Czech Republic

  33. What are the three primary colors? Red, blue and yellow

  34. Who invented the electric light bulb? Thomas Edison

  35. Who invented the telephone? Alexander Graham Bell

  36. What temperature does water boil at? 100c degrees

  37. Name one mammal that can't jump. Elephant (also sloths, hippos, and rhinos; but they can have 4 feet off the ground when they run)

  38. What does the Roman numeral C represent? 100

  39. What's the smallest type of tree in the world? Bonsai

  40. Who said E=mc2? Einstein

  41. Which planet is nearest the sun? Mercury

  42. What colors make purple? Red and blue

  43. What's the hardest rock? Diamond

  44. How much does a liter of water weigh? 1kg

  45. What language has the most words? English (about 250,000 different words)

  46. What money do they use in Japan? Yen

  47. Where does the American president live? The White House in Washington D.C.

  48. What is the first letter on a typewriter? Q

  49. What do the opposite sides of a dice add up to? Seven

  50. How long is a round in boxing? 3 minutes

  51. What's the highest score in a gymnastics exercise? 10

  52. How many months have 31 days? seven

  53. How many eyes are there on a pack of 52 cards? 42

  54. What are the Sun, the Independent and the Guardian? newspapers

  55. How many players are there in a basketball team? five

  56. How many lanes does an Olympic swimming pool have? eight

  57. How many prongs are there on a fork? four

  58. Who starts first in chess? white

  59. How many players are there in a volleyball team? six

  60. What are the five colors of the Olympic rings? red, yellow, green, blue, and black

  61. How many dots are there on two dice? 42

  62. How many wives did Henry the Eighth have? six

  63. What year did the first man go into space? 1961

  64. Where did the first atomic bomb explode for the first time (in Japan)? Hiroshima

  65. When did the First World War start? 1914

  66. When did the Second World War end? 1945

  67. Who was the first president of the United States of America? George Washington

  68. When did the Americans leave Vietnam? 1973

  69. Who was the first man on the moon? Neil Armstrong

  70. What's the name of the famous big clock in London? Big Ben

  71. Who gave his name to the month of July? Julius Caesar

  72. What's the capital of Kenya? Nairobi

  73. What's the smallest country in the world? Vatican City

  74. What's the largest city in India? Bombay / Mumbai

  75. What's the highest mountain in Africa? Kilimanjaro

  76. Which German city is famous for the perfume it produces? Cologne

  77. What is 15 meters high, 8 meters wide and 240 kilometers long? The Great Wall

  78. What's the highest mountain in the world? Everest

  79. Which country has the largest area: Australia, Brazil or India? Brazil

  80. In which city is Hollywood? Los Angeles

  81. Who did John Lennon marry? Yoko Ono

  82. What's the best known artificial international language? Esperanto

  83. Who lived at 221B, Baker Street, London? Sherlock Holmes

  84. Who cut Van Gogh's ear? he did it himself

  85. Who wrote Julius Caesar, Macbeth and Hamlet? Shakespeare

  86. What did the crocodile swallow in Peter Pan? alarm clock

  87. What are the first three words of the bible? In the beginning

  88. What did the 7 dwarves do for a job? miners

  89. Who painted the Sistine Chapel? Michelangelo

  90. What's the Hungarian word for pepper? paprika

  91. With which sport did Michael Jordan become famous for? basketball

  92. Who recorded the album ‘Dark Side of the Moon’? Pink Floyd

  93. What does the N stand for in NATO? North

  94. What is the main color on the Chinese flag? Red

  95. What is a famous sitcom about an army hospital in Korea? M*A*S*H

  96. A phlebotomist extracts what from the human body? Blood

  97. Granadilla is another name for which fruit? Passion-fruit

  98. Who was president of Vietnam from 1945-54? Ho Chi Minh

  99. Who painted “Water Lilies”? Claude Monet

  100. In the human body what is the hallux? big toe

  101. In which year did Henry VIII become King of England? 1509

  102. What search engine has the same name as the start of the name of the number 1 followed by 100 zeroes? Google

  103. Which of Snow White's dwarf friends starts with the letter 'B'? Bashful

  104. Which famous band had albums called 'Abbey Road,' 'Help!' and 'Let It Be'? The Beatles

  105. What number is huit in French but ocho in Spanish? eight

  106. On what temperature scale, are the boiling and freezing points of water 100° and 0°? Celsius or centigrade

  107. What word follows Manchester, West Ham and Newcastle in English Premier League teams? United

  108. What TV series had characters named Kirk, Spock, and Sulu? Star Trek

  109. What double-reed musical instrument used to be called a hautbois? oboe

  110. What female pop singer had #1 hits with 'Shake It Off' and 'Blank Space'? Taylor Swift

  111. What is the only country to begin with the letter 'O'? Oman

  112. What 1961 Disney movie's villain is Cruella de Vil? 101 Dalmatians

  113. What TV sitcom featured an actor, a chef, a paleontologist, and a barista? Friends

  114. What do you call a 6-sided geometric figure? hexagon

  115. Which continent has the most countries on it? Africa (it has 53)

  116. What is the secret identity of Peter Parker? Spiderman

  117. What is the name of either of the two long bones in the human forearm? ulna or radius

  118. Which planet has a moon named Titan? Saturn

  119. Since 1940, Jay Garrick has been what red super-speedy DC hero? Flash

  120. What unit is made up of 4 quarts? gallon

  121. What holiday is the day before All Saints Day? Halloween

  122. What singer of 'Dark Horse' and 'Hot and Cold' was married to Russell Brand? Katy Perry

  123. How many lines are there in a limerick? five

  124. What color is the 1 ball in billiards or pool? yellow

  125. What is the capital of Canada? Ottawa

  126. What country has a white flag with a red circle in the center? Japan

  127. What landlocked country borders both Chile and Brazil? Bolivia

  128. What space do all Monopoly games begin on? Go

  129. Which language do 30-40% of people in India speak? Hindi

  130. What is the patella bone more commonly known as? kneecap

  131. Which Princess pal of Mario has a fruity name? Peach

  132. What is one of the longest rivers in the world? The Nile or The Amazon

  133. What percent of the human body is water? 60%

  134. How many keys are there on a piano? 88

  135. How long does an elephant’s pregnancy last? 22 months

  136. What percent of people are left handed? 13%

  137. A word or sentence that is the same front and back (racecar, kayak) is called what? Palindrome

  138. What is the most common name in the world? Muhammad

  139. What is the strongest muscle in the human body? Tongue

  140. Which body part stays the same size from when we are born to when we die? Eyeball

  141. What is the capital of Australia? Canberra

  142. Are dolphins fish or mammals? Mammals

  143. Which American state is nearest to the former Soviet Union? Alaska

  144. How many arms/tentacles/limbs does a squid have? Ten (generally a squid is considered to have two tentacles and eight arms)

  145. Which reggae singing star died 11th May 1981? Bob Marley

  146. Name the two families in Romeo and Juliet? Montague & Capulet

  147. The llama belongs to the family of animals commonly called what? Camels

  148. Which guitarist is known as Slowhand? Eric Clapton

  149. What is infant whale commonly called? Calf

  150. What is the alternative common name for a Black Leopard? Panther

  151. What do the British call the vegetables that Americans call zucchini? Courgettes

  152. What is an otter's home called? Holt

  153. In Roman mythology, Neptune is the equivalent to which Greek god? Poseidon

  154. Which TV character said, 'Live long and prosper'? Mr. Spock (from Star Trek)

  155. Complete the name of the American Football team: 'Dallas...........'? Cowboys

  156. How old is a horse when it changes from a filly to a mare? Four years old

  157. What is Canada's national animal? Beaver

  158. Which toy company takes its name from the Danish phrase for "play well"? Lego

  159. The French celebrate Bastille Day in which month? July

  160. What is an NBA player deemed to be if he has received the Maurice Podoloff Trophy? The most valuable player (MVP)

  161. What sport used the term ‘home run’ long before baseball? Cricket

  162. What was the first sport in which women were invited to compete at the Olympics? Tennis

  163. In cross-country bike racing, what do the initials BMX represent? Bicycle moto x (cross)

  164. Which country dominates Olympics basketball like no one else? USA (has won the gold 14 times out of 18)

  165. Which type of ball was basketball played with until 1929? Soccer ball

  166. Which is the only country to have played in each and every FIFA World Cup? Brazil

  167. Which country won the first FIFA Soccer World Cup held in 1930? Uruguay

  168. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar played 20 seasons in which sport? Basketball

  169. How many players are on the field for each team in an Australian rules football match? 18

  170. In sport, what is black, 1 inch thick, 3 inches in diameter, and weighs between 5.5 and 6 ounces? Ice hockey puck

  171. How many players, including the goaltender, make up an ice hockey team? Six

  172. In feet, how high is a basketball hoop? 10 feet

  173. What nationality is tennis player Novak Djokovic? Serbian

  174. Name the only major team sport in the USA with no game clock? Baseball

  175. The American basketball team, ‘The Bulls’, represent which city? Chicago

  176. Which sport is played on the biggest pitch in terms of area? Polo

  177. What is the maximum time limit allowed to look for a lost ball in golf? 5 minutes

  178. Name the European club David Beckham ended his career with? Paris Saint-Germain

  179. What city of Asia hosted the Summer Olympics in 2008? Beijing

  180. How many holes in a bowling ball? Three

  181. Name a country which won its first ever gold medal in Rio? Bahrain, Fiji, Ivory Coast, Jordan, Kosovo, Puerto Rico, Singapore, Tajikistan, and Vietnam

  182. Which countries border Vietnam? China, Laos, and Cambodia

  183. What is Vietnam’s national animal? Water Buffalo

  184. In what city does the president of Vietnam live? Hanoi

  185. What is the capital of the USA? Washington DC

  186. Which state has the largest land area in the USA? Alaska

  187. What countries border the USA? Mexico and Canada

  188. In what ocean is Hawaii located? Pacific Ocean

  189. What is USA’s national animal? Bald Eagle

  190. What do the stars on the USA’s flag represent? 50 states

  191. What do the stripes on the USA’s flag represent? 13 original colonies

  192. Who is the president of Korea? Park Geun-Hye

  193. What is Korea’s national animal? Siberian Tiger

  194. What does the center part of Korea’s flag mean? Yin and Yang (opposites)

  195. When was the Korean flag adopted? January 25, 1950

  196. What war was called ‘The War to End All Wars’? World War 1

  197. Cleopatra was the queen of which country? Egypt

  198. What is 15th century scientist Copernicus famous for? He said the Sun (not the Earth) was at the center of our universe.

  199. What was King Sejong’s name at birth? Yi Do (Lee Do)

  200. What restaurant did Ray Kroc make successful? McDonald’s

  201. When did Israel officially become a country? 1948

  202. How long did Nelson Mandela stay in prison? 27 years

  203. The yo-yo was originally a weapon. True

  204. Who discovered the law of gravity? Isaac Newton

  205. Which country first used paper money? China

  206. How long did it take Leonardo da Vinci to paint the ‘Mona Lisa’? 10 years

  207. Tug-of-war used to be an Olympic sport. True

  208. Indira Gandhi was prime minister of which country? India

  209. Where was Audrey Hepburn born? Belgium

  210. 15th century Romanian ruler Vlad the Impaler was the inspiration for which horror character? Dracula

  211. Before 1960, advertisements used to claim that smoking cigarettes was good for your health. True

  212. How many members are in Girls Generation? eight

  213. If a member of a group is the "maknae," then they are the... The youngest

  214. Who is the leader of Big Bang? G-Dragon

  215. Onew is a member of which Idol group? SHINee

  216. What is the Wonder Girls' debut US single? Nobody

  217. Which artist won the Grammy for Album of the Year with her album "1989" at the 2016 Grammy Awards? Taylor Swift

  218. Which 2016 superhero film has the hero Wade Wilson looking for the man who gave him a scarred physical appearance? Deadpool

  219. Both big hits in 2016, the songs "Sorry" and "Love Yourself" were released by which Canadian singer and songwriter? Justin Bieber

  220. Rihanna hit number one on Billboard in March of 2016 with what album? Anti

  221. Finish the title to this 2016 film- “Batman v _______ - Dawn of Justice.” Superman

  222. The 2016 Summer Olympics took place in which South American city? Rio De Janeiro

  223. Which singer had hits songs "When We Were Young" and "Hello" in 2016? Adele

  224. What's the name of SHINee's debut song? Noona, You’re So Pretty/Beautiful

  225. Which song won the Song of the Year at the 2016 Grammy Awards? Thinking Out Loud

  226. Which Canadian rapper had Billboard hits with the songs "Hotline Bling" and "Summer Sixteen" in 2016? Drake

  227. Making its 32nd season debut in February of 2016, Survivor was filmed in Koh Rong, which is located in which country? Thailand

  228. Which Disney film made its debut in 2016? Zootopia

  229. What K-Pop song has topped charts around the world with its catchy tune and 'horse dance'? Gangnam Style

  230. Which K-pop boy group debuted with the album "Mama"? Exo

  231. What does the boy group name ZE:A mean? Children of Empire

  232. Which K-pop boy group contains two members who began as child actors? Teen Top

  233. Which K-pop boy group has two members who starred in the drama "Dream High 2" before they debuted with this group? Got7

  234. Which album by Big Bang was the first Korean album to chart on Billboard? Alive

  235. Which K-pop boy won the survival rap program "Show Me the Money 3"? Bobby

  236. What year was Facebook founded? 2004

  237. Which BTOB member is known for his “aegyo”? Il Hoon

  238. The Hundred Years War lasted 100 years. False

  239. The horror story Frankenstein was written by a man. False

  240. Iceland is really green and Greenland is really icy. True

  241. Kublai Khan was the son of Genghis Khan. False

  242. Leeches used to be used by doctors as a medical cure. True

  243. The Great Famine of Ireland (1845~1852) was caused by the failure of which crop? Potatoes

  244. Which legendary king lived in Camelot? King Arthur

  245. Why was Rosa Parks arrested in 1955? She refused to give up her seat and move to the back of the bus.

  246. Why are Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay famous? They were the first people to climb to the top of Mount Everest.

  247. How did Alexander Graham Bell expect people to answer the telephone? “Ahoy-hoy.”

  248. What is the nickname for the United Kingdom’s flag? The Union Jack

  249. What is the world's third largest sea? Mediterranean

  250. Name the capital city of Belgium? Brussels

  251. Which country has the largest population? China

  252. Which country is the densest in population? Monaco

  253. Which country is the sparsest in population? Greenland

  254. Which country is the biggest in land area? Russia

  255. Which country has the longest coastline? Canada

  256. Where is the biggest desert on earth? Antarctica

  257. The highest mountain of the world is in which two countries? China and Nepal

  258. The lowest point of land on earth is on the border between which three countries? Palestine, Israel and Jordan

  259. Which capital city in the world is at the highest altitude? La Paz, Bolivia

  260. The most urbanised country in the world is… Singapore

  261. Which planet is also known as the morning star? Venus

  262. Which continent has the fewest people living on it? Antarctica

  263. Which country is shaped like a boot? Italy

  264. Which country is in South America; Brazil, Mexico, Spain, or India? Brazil

  265. Name the most famous city centre in Europe with no cars? Venice

  266. Name one city that is in two continents? Istanbul (or Panama City)

  267. What is the name of the biggest ocean on Earth? Pacific Ocean

  268. Helsinki is the capital city of which country? Finland

  269. Where is the longest beach in the world? Bangladesh

  270. Name the colors of the flags of these countries:

Argentina

Ireland

France

Germany