Words invented by Shakespeare
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Words Invented by Shakespeare — Daily trivia Wednesday, July 29, 2026: questions and answers
All 10 questions with answers and explanations. Play this daily
Q 01Which adjective, formed from an older noun plus -ic, completes Cassius's line 'get the start of the ___ world'?
- ARoyal
- BStately
- CGlorious
- DMajestic
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Majestic
Majestic. Cassius is marvelling that a man as feeble as Caesar could outrun 'the majestic world' and take the prize alone.
Q 02Which everyday word completes Coriolanus's farewell line 'Like to a ___ dragon'?
- ASolitary
- BIsolated
- CForlorn
- DLonely
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Lonely
Lonely. Coriolanus tells his mother that though he goes alone, he'll be like a dragon 'fear'd and talk'd of more than seen'.
Q 03Which word for dull or uninspired quality first appeared in Shakespeare's As You Like It?
- ATedious
- BMonotonous
- CLackluster
- DDrab
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Lackluster
Lackluster. Jaques describes a fool 'looking on it with lack-lustre eye', and Shakespeare also gives us lack-love, lack-beard and lack-brain.
Q 04Which verb, first recorded in Shakespeare, fills the Macbeth witch's curse 'Shall he ___, peak and pine'?
- ARecede
- BDwindle
- CWane
- DDiminish
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Dwindle
Dwindle. It is a shrinking form of the older verb 'dwine', to waste away, and the witch is promising a sailor a slow, wasting misery.
Q 05What word for a boastful way of walking first appeared in Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream?
- ASwagger
- BSaunter
- CProwl
- DStrut
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Swagger
Puck asks 'What hempen home-spuns have we swaggering here?' as the mechanicals blunder into the fairy queen's bower; the word probably comes from 'swag', to sway.
Q 06Which adjective completes Solanio's 'though Nestor swear the jest be ___' in The Merchant of Venice?
- ALudicrous
- BAbsurd
- CLaughable
- DRisible
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Laughable
Laughable. Solanio says some men are so sour they won't crack a smile even if wise old Nestor swears the joke is funny.
Q 07What term for a strong inclination or devotion was first recorded in Shakespeare's Henry V?
- AAddiction
- BObsession
- CFixation
- DHabit
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Addiction
Addiction. The Archbishop of Canterbury marvels that Prince Hal turned out so wise 'since his addiction was to courses vain'.
Q 08In which of his history plays did Shakespeare coin the term 'cold-blooded', meaning callous?
- ARichard III
- BKing John
- CHenry VI
- DHenry VIII
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King John
King John. Constance hurls 'Thou cold-blooded slave' at the Duke of Austria, and the literal sense for reptiles came only a few years later.
Q 09Which body part did Shakespeare turn into a verb in King Lear's line 'a sovereign shame so ___ him'?
- AElbow
- BFoot
- CHead
- DHand
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Elbow
Elbow. Kent means that Lear's shame keeps shoving him away from Cordelia, the daughter his own unkindness stripped of his blessing.
Q 10Which term for jealousy was introduced by Shakespeare in The Merchant of Venice?
- AEnvious
- BGreen-eyed
- CResentful
- DCovetous
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Green-eyed
Portia names 'green-eyed jealousy' as Bassanio chooses the right casket; Iago's 'green-eyed monster' in Othello came a few years later and stole the phrase's fame.
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