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40 trivia questions for seniors

Questions on classic songs and films, famous people, history, food, places and holidays for an activity group or a family visit. Read one aloud, give the group time to talk it over, then reveal the answer.

Updated · 40 questions

40 questions · Trivia questions for seniors · answers included

Trivia questions for seniors

Choose a score button to add a point. Scores last for this page visit.

Space shows the answer. Arrow keys move. Keys 1 to 6 add a team point. F fills the screen. Escape closes play.

DifficultyWhat the difficulty bands mean

Showing 40 of 40

Music

  1. Freddie Mercury is associated with which band?

    easy

    Answer

    Queen

    Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Queen_(band)?oldid=1363286202#1980%E2%80%931982%3A_The_Game%2C_Hot_Space_and_stadium_tours

  2. Which four musicians comprised the Beatles?

    easy

    Answer

    John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr

    Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Beatles?oldid=1365620680

  3. Who wrote and first recorded Jolene?

    medium

    Answer

    Dolly Parton

    Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jolene?oldid=1362915604

  4. Which Fleetwood Mac album was released on 4 February 1977?

    medium

    Answer

    Rumours

    Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rumours_(album)?oldid=1365838700

  5. Which composer continued writing music after becoming profoundly deaf?

    easy

    Answer

    Beethoven

    Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ludwig_van_Beethoven?oldid=1366046655#Deafness

Christmas

  1. Who wrote the song White Christmas?

    easy

    Answer

    Irving Berlin

    Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_Christmas_(song)?oldid=1359049579

  2. Who wrote Jingle Bells?

    easy

    Answer

    James Lord Pierpont

    Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jingle_Bells?oldid=1365209071

  3. In what year was A Christmas Carol first published?

    easy

    Answer

    1843

    Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Christmas_Carol?oldid=1359601371

  4. Which miser is the central character of A Christmas Carol?

    easy

    Answer

    Ebenezer Scrooge

    Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Christmas_Carol?oldid=1359601371

  5. Which 1823 poem strengthened modern depictions of Santa?

    medium

    Answer

    A Visit from St. Nicholas

    Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santa_Claus?oldid=1365103587

Film and television

  1. Which actor stars alongside Kate Winslet in Titanic?

    easy

    Answer

    Leonardo DiCaprio

    Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Titanic_(1997_film)?oldid=1366054107

  2. Which 1941 film was directed, produced by, and starred Orson Welles?

    medium

    Answer

    Citizen Kane

    Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Citizen_Kane?oldid=1365058577

  3. Which television detective lives at 221B Baker Street in many adaptations?

    easy

    Answer

    Sherlock Holmes

    Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sherlock_Holmes?oldid=1365649282#Honours

History

  1. What was discovered in Egypt in 1922 by Howard Carter?

    medium

    Answer

    The tomb of Tutankhamun

    Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Discovery_of_the_tomb_of_Tutankhamun?oldid=1363813832

  2. Who became South Africa’s first Black president in 1994?

    easy

    Answer

    Mandela

    Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nelson_Mandela?oldid=1365645914

  3. What name is given to the cultural rebirth that began in Italian cities?

    easy

    Answer

    The Renaissance

    Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Renaissance?oldid=1365516125

  4. Which city hosted the first modern Olympic Games in 1896?

    medium

    Answer

    Athens

    Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1896_Summer_Olympics?oldid=1357065985

Inventions and discovery

  1. Which brothers built and flew the first successful powered airplane?

    easy

    Answer

    The Wright brothers

    Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wright_brothers?oldid=1363216710

  2. Who demonstrated in 1796 that cowpox infection conferred immunity against smallpox?

    medium

    Answer

    Edward Jenner

    Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smallpox_vaccine?oldid=1362191119

  3. How did penicillin first reveal itself to Alexander Fleming?

    medium

    Answer

    The mould killed the bacteria

    Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Discovery_of_penicillin?oldid=1364421317#Background

Sport

  1. What is a score of zero games called in tennis?

    easy

    Answer

    Love

    Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tennis_scoring_system?oldid=1365214798#Tiebreak_scoring

  2. By what nickname is Muhammad Ali widely known?

    easy

    Answer

    The Greatest

    Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muhammad_Ali?oldid=1364290636

  3. Which athlete won four gold medals at the 1936 Berlin Olympics?

    medium

    Answer

    Owens

    Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jesse_Owens?oldid=1363329522

  4. What happens when a golfer scores one under par on a hole?

    medium

    Answer

    A birdie

    Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Par_(score)?oldid=1341770659#Birdie

Food and drink

  1. What dairy product is churned to make butter?

    medium

    Answer

    Cream

    Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Butter?oldid=1362175857

  2. What are the two main ingredients in a basic meringue?

    medium

    Answer

    Egg whites and sugar

    Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meringue?oldid=1347156286

  3. Which vegetable is traditionally used to make sauerkraut?

    easy

    Answer

    Cabbage

    Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sauerkraut?oldid=1365304663

  4. Which part of a cinnamon tree becomes the spice?

    medium

    Answer

    The inner bark

    Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cinnamon?oldid=1362542331

Animals and nature

  1. Which animal builds dams that reshape streams?

    easy

    Answer

    Beaver

    Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beaver?oldid=1365293999#Infrastructure

Geography

  1. Which mountain is the highest above sea level?

    easy

    Answer

    Mount Everest

    Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mount_Everest?oldid=1365907460

  2. Which nation has a maple leaf on its flag?

    easy

    Answer

    Canada

    Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flag_of_Canada?oldid=1360679590

  3. Which river passes through Vienna, Bratislava, Budapest, and Belgrade?

    medium

    Answer

    The Danube

    Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danube?oldid=1364618141#Geography

General knowledge

  1. What do the letters RSVP ask an invited guest to do?

    medium

    Answer

    Please respond

    Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RSVP?oldid=1365198805

  2. What is the dot-and-dash communication system called?

    easy

    Answer

    Morse code

    Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morse_code?oldid=1364531517#Operator-led_change_from_graphical_to_audible_code

  3. Which number has no Roman numeral in the classical system?

    medium

    Answer

    Zero

    Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_numerals?oldid=1365177558#Zero

Art

  1. Which museum in Paris houses the Mona Lisa?

    easy

    Answer

    The Louvre

    Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louvre?oldid=1362298616#Management%2C_administration%2C_partnerships

  2. Who painted the Sistine Chapel ceiling between 1508 and 1512?

    easy

    Answer

    Michelangelo

    Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sistine_Chapel_ceiling?oldid=1361379409

  3. Which artist designed the melting clocks in The Persistence of Memory?

    easy

    Answer

    Salvador Dalí

    Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Persistence_of_Memory?oldid=1365591625

Halloween

  1. Who recorded the novelty song Monster Mash?

    medium

    Answer

    Bobby "Boris" Pickett

    Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monster_Mash?oldid=1352369377

U.S. states

  1. Which mountain in Alaska is the highest peak in North America?

    easy

    Answer

    Denali

    Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Denali?oldid=1365843900

Plan the round and team scores

8 turns × 60 seconds = 8 minutes of play, plus instructions and breaks.

60

Pause whenever the group needs more time.

Team Lime is acting

Team Lime: 0

Team Violet: 0

Use this set with a group

Read a prompt, allow thinking time, then invite an answer or a pass. For a timed round, choose a turn length before starting. A host can keep the printed answers out of view until the round ends.