40 trivia questions for teens
Questions on music, sport, games, films and TV, and school subjects for a mixed group of 13 to 17 year olds. Play in teams, then reveal each answer and its source.
Updated
Music
What is Taylor Swift’s global fanbase called?
easy
Swifties
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taylor_Swift?oldid=1366009985
Who sang Rolling in the Deep?
easy
Adele
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rolling_in_the_Deep?oldid=1362147209
By what title is Michael Jackson known?
easy
King of Pop
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Jackson?oldid=1365789727
Which band recorded Hey Jude?
easy
Beatles
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hey_Jude?oldid=1364208072#Trident_Studios_recording
How many strings does a standard guitar usually have?
easy
Six
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guitar?oldid=1363122781#Standard
Which country is strongly associated with the musical style reggae?
easy
Jamaica
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reggae?oldid=1365962231#Cultural_connections
Sport
How many players does a soccer team field at the start of a match?
easy
Eleven
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Association_football?oldid=1365398893#Gameplay
In which sport would you score a touchdown?
easy
American football (Canadian football has touchdowns too, so accept either)
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Touchdown?oldid=1351688910
How many rings appear on the Olympic symbol?
easy
Five
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olympic_symbols?oldid=1360606769
How many points is a free throw worth in basketball?
easy
One
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_throw?oldid=1365039427
Which swimming stroke shares its name with an insect?
easy
Butterfly
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Butterfly_stroke?oldid=1362368263
How is a three-goal performance by one player in a single game described?
easy
Hat-trick
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hat-trick?oldid=1365875953#Association_football_(soccer)
Games
Which silent mob sneaks up on you and blows itself up?
easy
The creeper.
It leaves a terrible mess behind.
Source: Minecraft.net https://www.minecraft.net/en-us/article/minecraft-mobs
Which boss must you defeat to finish Minecraft and reach the credits?
easy
The Ender Dragon.
It lives in the End dimension.
Source: Minecraft.net https://www.minecraft.net/en-us/article/stronghold
What type is Pikachu?
easy
Electric.
Its cheeks store electricity.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pikachu?oldid=1376110365
What is the name of the in-game encyclopedia that records the Pokémon you see and catch?
easy
The Pokédex.
Completing it is one of the goals of every game.
Source: The Pokémon Company https://parents.pokemon.com/en-us/video-games-and-apps/
Which 2016 mobile game uses GPS so players catch Pokémon in the real world?
medium
Pokémon Go.
Players explore their neighborhood to find Pokémon.
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pok%C3%A9mon_Go?oldid=1376919232
Which chess piece can jump over other pieces?
easy
The knight
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knight_(chess)?oldid=1356911932#Movement
Films and TV
Who lives in a pineapple under the sea?
easy
SpongeBob SquarePants
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SpongeBob_SquarePants?oldid=1365958032#Characters
What is Iron Man's real name?
easy
Tony Stark.
Stark is a genius inventor and billionaire.
Source: Marvel https://www.marvel.com/characters/iron-man-tony-stark/in-comics
Who plays Peter Parker in Spider-Man: Homecoming?
easy
Tom Holland.
Holland first played Spider-Man in Captain America: Civil War.
Source: Marvel https://www.marvel.com/movies/spider-man-homecoming
Which villain reveals that he is Luke Skywalker's father?
easy
Darth Vader.
Vader tells Luke the truth during their duel in Cloud City.
Source: StarWars.com Databank https://www.starwars.com/databank/luke-skywalker
Name the four Hogwarts houses.
easy
Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin.
The Sorting Hat places every new student in one of them.
Source: HarryPotter.com fact file https://www.harrypotter.com/fact-file/objects/the-sorting-hat
Which spell makes objects float?
easy
Wingardium Leviosa (the Levitation Charm).
Professor Flitwick teaches the “swish and flick” wand movement.
Source: HarryPotter.com fact file https://www.harrypotter.com/fact-file/spells/the-levitation-charm
Who plays Steve in A Minecraft Movie?
easy
Jack Black.
Steve is an expert crafter in the film.
Source: Minecraft.net https://www.minecraft.net/en-us/article/a-first-look-at-the-minecraft-movie
Science and space
Which parts of a cell make most of the energy it needs to work?
medium
Mitochondria
Mitochondria store the energy they make in a small molecule called ATP.
Source: National Human Genome Research Institute https://www.genome.gov/genetics-glossary/Mitochondria
What does DNA stand for?
easy
Deoxyribonucleic acid
DNA is the molecule that carries hereditary information in almost all living things.
Source: MedlinePlus (National Library of Medicine) https://medlineplus.gov/genetics/understanding/basics/dna/
Which gas makes up about 78 percent of Earth's atmosphere?
easy
Nitrogen
Air is about 78 percent nitrogen, 21 percent oxygen and 1 percent other gases.
Source: NASA https://science.nasa.gov/earth/facts/
Which element has the chemical symbol Fe?
easy
Iron
Fe comes from ferrum, the Latin word for iron.
Source: Los Alamos National Laboratory https://periodic.lanl.gov/26.shtml
How many bones are in an adult human skeleton?
easy
206
The adult skeleton usually has 206 named bones: 80 in the skull, spine and rib cage, and 126 in the limbs, shoulders and hips.
Source: National Cancer Institute (SEER) https://training.seer.cancer.gov/anatomy/skeletal/divisions/
Is a light-year a measure of time or of distance?
medium
Distance
It is how far light travels in one year, about 6 trillion miles.
Source: NASA Space Place https://spaceplace.nasa.gov/light-year/en/
Which planet is so light for its size that it would float in a big enough bathtub?
medium
Geography
What is the largest ocean on Earth?
easy
The Pacific Ocean
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pacific_Ocean?oldid=1365892953
Which country takes up the whole mainland of a continent?
easy
Australia
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australia?oldid=1365983641
What is the capital of Canada?
medium
Ottawa
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ottawa?oldid=1366046499#Selection_as_capital
Words
What rhetorical device compares two things using like or as?
easy
A simile
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simile?oldid=1361263513
What name is given to words such as buzz and hiss that imitate sounds?
medium
Onomatopoeia
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Onomatopoeia?oldid=1358752178
History and myths
Who was the first person to walk on the Moon?
easy
Armstrong
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neil_Armstrong?oldid=1365168332
Which city was buried by Mount Vesuvius in AD 79?
easy
Pompeii
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pompeii?oldid=1365390096
Who is the Greek god of the sea?
easy
Poseidon
Source: Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poseidon?oldid=1365255239#Origins
Plan the round and team scores
8 turns × 60 seconds = 8 minutes of play, plus instructions and breaks.
60
These are adjustable house rules. Pause whenever the group needs more time.
Team 1: 0
Team 2: 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.