Learning English

Quiz time

It's time for something a little different. Read the conversation below. It's between a quizmaster - someone who asks questions in a quiz, and a contestant - someone who takes part in a quiz. At the end the contestant gets 6 points. But how can this be?

Hint: Is this actually a general knowledge quiz or is the quizmaster testing the contestant about the theme of this session?

Quizmaster
What is the capital of Uzbekistan?

Contestant
I don't know.

Quizmaster
What is the distance from the earth to the moon?

Contestant
Beats me.

Quizmaster
What's the chemical symbol for gold?

Contestant
No idea.

Quizmaster
Who invented the microscope?

Contestant
I haven't got a clue.

Quizmaster
What's the longest river in the world?

Contestant
Sorry, I don't have the faintest idea.

Quizmaster
How deep is the Pacific Ocean at its deepest point.

Contestant
I don't have the foggiest.

Quizmaster
When were the pyramids built?

Contestant
You've got me there.

Quizmaster
Congratulations! At the end of that round you have scored 6 points! Well done.

阅读文章并完成练习

What kind of quiz was that?

Are you confused, puzzled, scratching your head? The contestant didn't answer any questions correctly but got 6 points. How can this be?

Look at the quiz again. What do all the answers have in common?

They are all synonyms meaning 'I don't know'.

So in fact, it's a synonym quiz, the contestant got a point for each synonym!

OK, maybe it's not the best quiz in the world but using synonyms adds variety and colour to spoken and written English.

To do

Now it's your chance to try a quiz. Choose the best option as the synonym for the highlighted word.

Next

Did you get them allright? 100%? Allcorrect? 

Were you spot on?

Great! Excellent! Superb! Well done!

There is more information about synonyms in the next activity.