About this quiz

This general knowledge quiz mixes twenty questions from geography, history, science, nature and food. It starts with questions most people know and gets harder as it goes, with a few surprises about everyday things like bananas and honey.

Every answer comes with a fun fact, so even the ones you miss are worth reading. It's a good warm-up for a pub quiz and a quick way to see how broad your knowledge really is.

Answers explained

Show the answers (spoilers)

  1. Who painted the Mona Lisa?

    Leonardo da Vinci. It hangs in the Louvre in Paris, behind bulletproof glass.

  2. Which is the tallest mountain above sea level?

    Mount Everest. Everest sits on the border between Nepal and China.

  3. How many sides does a hexagon have?

    6. Bees build hexagonal honeycomb because the shape holds the most honey for the least wax.

  4. How many continents are there?

    7. In the model taught in the UK and US: Africa, Antarctica, Asia, Australia, Europe, North America and South America.

  5. What’s the largest ocean on Earth?

    Pacific. The Pacific is bigger than all the land on Earth combined.

  6. In which year did the Titanic sink?

    1912. It was the ship’s maiden voyage, from Southampton to New York.

  7. Which country gave the Statue of Liberty to the USA?

    France. It was dedicated in New York Harbor in 1886.

  8. Which gas do plants take in from the air to make their food?

    Carbon dioxide. They release oxygen as a by-product of photosynthesis.

  9. What’s the hardest natural substance?

    Diamond. Diamonds are made of carbon, the same element as pencil lead (graphite).

  10. At what temperature does water freeze in Fahrenheit?

    32°F. At sea level, water boils at 212°F.

  11. Which is the smallest country in the world?

    Vatican City. Vatican City covers less than half a square kilometre.

  12. What is the chemical symbol for gold?

    Au. Au comes from aurum, the Latin word for gold.

  13. How many bones does an adult human have?

    206. Babies are born with around 300. Many fuse together as they grow.

  14. How many hearts does an octopus have?

    3. Octopuses have three hearts, and their blood is blue.

  15. Which food never goes off if stored properly?

    Honey. Archaeologists have found edible honey in ancient Egyptian tombs.

  16. Which language has the most native speakers?

    Mandarin Chinese. English has more speakers in total once you count people who learned it as a second language.

  17. Which planet has the shortest day?

    Jupiter. A day on Jupiter lasts about 10 hours. On Venus, a day is longer than its year.

  18. Which of these is technically a berry?

    Banana. Bananas are true berries. Strawberries and raspberries aren’t.

  19. Which country has the most islands?

    Sweden. By most counts Sweden has over 260,000 islands, and most are uninhabited.

  20. Which letter doesn’t appear in the name of any US state?

    Q. J is in New Jersey, X is in Texas and Z is in Arizona. Q is the only letter that’s missing.