48 Hard Trivia Questions and Answers
Hard trivia questions on mixed subjects. These are questions that Trivia Cafe visitors most often marked as ones they did not know, which makes them useful for a tie-break or for a team that finds the usual rounds too simple. The answer is printed under each question.
There are 48 questions on this page. They are free to use for quiz nights, classrooms and pub quizzes, and each one links to its own page.
Related lists: Easy trivia questions, Book and Literature trivia questions, Chemistry trivia questions.
1.This person had so many musical hits in the 1950's that he became the first artist ever to release a "Greatest Hits" album. It stayed in the Billboard top album charts for over 7 years! Which musical artist is this?
Answer: JOHNNY MATHIS
Open this question2.The first Winter Olympics were held in 1924, in which city of France?
Answer: CHAMONIX
Open this question3.Born in 1964, this speed skater was the first American woman to win five gold medals in Olympic competition. Who is she?
Answer: BONNIE BLAIR
Open this question4.We send our mail according to the proper ZIP code. What is ZIP an abbreviation for?
Answer: ZONE IMPROVEMENT PLAN
Open this question5.The oldest street in San Francisco was originally called Dupont Street, but was later re-named after a President. Which street is this?
Answer: GRANT ST. - named after Ulysses S. Grant, 18th Pres.
Open this question6.What three words, the motto of France, are found on most French coins?
Answer: LIBERTÉ / EGALITÉ / FRATERNITÉ
Open this question7.What is the name of the star system in which the "Star Fox" universe takes place?
Answer: Lylat
Open this question8.Solid Snake is a hero in which famous videogame franchise?
Answer: Metal Gear
Open this question9.Bob Hope was born May 29, of what year?
Answer: 1903
Open this question10.Which iconic actor provided the voice of the titular character during the 1990's "Sonic the Hedgehog" cartoon?
Answer: Jaleel White
Open this question11.A certain major league baseball team owner recorded one of the largest selling records of all time. Who is it and what is the song title?
Answer: GENE AUTRY / RUDOLPH THE RED NOSED REINDEER
Open this question12.This British dramatist and poet lived about 400 years ago and is considered the first poet laureate of Britain. A Canadian track star has the same name. Who was this person?
Answer: BEN JONSON
Open this question13.The "Kingdom Hearts" videogame series is a collaboration between Disney and what famous gaming company?
Answer: Square Enix
Open this question14.Can you recall the name of the 1961 film which was coincidentally the last film made by both Clark Gable and Marilyn Monroe?
Answer: THE MISFITS
Open this question15.What is the Spanish word for a person of mixed racial ancestry, especially of mixed European and Native American ancestry?
Answer: MESTIZO
Open this question16.This English explorer, poet, and historian was sentenced to death in 1603 on a trumped-up charge of treason against James I. Imprisoned in the Tower of London, he wrote his History of the World. He was released on parole in 1616 to lead an expedition to South America. Who was he?
Answer: SIR WALTER RALEIGH
Open this question17.Who was the original host of the TV game show of Jeopardy ?
Answer: ART FLEMING
Open this question18.By 1984, this singer/entertainer had sold around 100 million record albums and given over 2,000 live concerts, yet he was relatively unknown in the United States. Who is he?
Answer: JULIO IGLESIAS
Open this question19.Which song features the words, "Newspaper taxis appear on the shore"?
Answer: LUCY IN THE SKY WITH DIAMONDS
Open this question20.There are three countries of the world found in two continents each. Can you name them?
Answer: RUSSIA / TURKEY / EGYPT (Kazakhstan and Indonesia are others)
Open this question21.Patty Hearst was kidnapped on February 4, in what year?
Answer: 1974
Open this question22.In the history of ship development, around 3000 B.C., who were the first people to discover sails and build boats out of planks of wood?
Answer: EGYPTIANS
Open this question23.In what 1989 Spike Lee film does Danny Aiello play a Brooklyn pizzeria owner involved in a racial conflict?
Answer: DO THE RIGHT THING
Open this question24.What is the next number is this sequence? 1, 4, 10, 20, 35, 56, ?
Answer: 84
Open this question25.What is the object that opposing players must destroy in order to win at "League of Legends"?
Answer: Nexus
Open this question26.When the U.S. Constitution was written and signed by the delegates to the Constitutional convention on 9/17/1787, in which order did the delegates sign it?
Answer: NORTH TO SOUTH - N.H. first, Ga. last
Open this question27.From the computer world: What does the word "modem" abbreviate?
Answer: MODULATION AND DEMODULATION
Open this question28.The world's first automobile license plates showed up in 1893, in which country?
Answer: FRANCE
Open this question29.Before Sacramento became California's capital city in 1854, five other places hosted the seat of California's government. Can you name them?
Answer: LOS ANGELES / MONTEREY / SAN JOSE / BENICIA / VALLEJO
Open this question30.What is the process called by which people set out to amass large amounts of in-game currency to sell in the real world?
Answer: Gold farming
Open this question31.What was the name of the virtual pandemic that struck the "World of Warcraft" in 2005?
Answer: Corrupted Blood
Open this question32.This person made his fortune by supplying meat to the Union soldiers during the Civil War. In 1870 he built his first meat-packing plant in Chicago, which soon made that city the meat-packing center of the U.S.A. What was his name?
Answer: PHILIP ARMOUR
Open this question33.Superstar rapper/producer Dr. Dre played an arms' dealer in which videogame?
Answer: 50 Cent: Bulletproof
Open this question34.When this Ohio college was founded in 1833, it became the first co-ed college in the US, and in 1841, first to award degrees to women. Which school?
Answer: OBERLIN COLLEGE
Open this question35.Who played the roles of Bobby and Pam Ewing in the popular TV show, Dallas?
Answer: Patrick Duffy / Victoria Principal
Open this question36.Can you name three other Presidents besides Clinton whose first name was William?
Answer: William Henry Harrison, William McKinley, William Howard Taft
Open this question37.Which 19th-century American publisher compiled the first standard reference work for quotations?
Answer: JOHN BARTLETT
Open this question38.Which title for the emperors of the Holy Roman Empire comes from the Latin name of a real person?
Answer: KAISER
Open this question39.a. What is the tallest mountain in Colorado? b. What is the tallest mountain in Oregon?
Answer: a. MT. ELBERT b. MT. HOOD
Open this question40.What 1992 film drama starred Demi Moore, Tom Cruise, and Jack Nicholson?
Answer: A FEW GOOD MEN
Open this question41.In which 1992 film did Antonio Banderas and Armand Assante play brothers who flee Cuba with dreams of Latin music stardom in New York City?
Answer: THE MAMBO KINGS
Open this question42.The well-known line: “Theirs not to reason why, Theirs but to do and die” comes from the English poem, “The Charge of the Light Brigade,” written by whom?
Answer: ALFRED, LORD TENNYSON
Open this question43.The length of one earth day is approximately 24 hours (actually 23'56). Which planet in our solar system has the longest day, equivalent to about 243 earth days?
Answer: VENUS
Open this question44.People who disregard conventional standards of behavior are sometimes called bohemians. The historical region of Bohemia is located in what present-day country?
Answer: CZECH REPUBLIC
Open this question45.Which facial style for men was named after a 17th century Flemish portrait painter?
Answer: VAN DYKE Sir Anthony. 1599-1641. Flemish painter whose numerous portraits, including many of the English court, are remarkable for their dignity and gentle emotion.
Open this question46.In 1802, E.I. DuPont established a factory that developed into the worldwide firm Du Pont. The DuPont family made their early riches selling what?
Answer: GUNPOWDER
Open this question47.What was the first state to enter the union after the original thirteen?
Answer: VERMONT
Open this question48.Can you use some of the letters ABCDEF, but not use any letter more than once, to form a five-letter word?
Answer: FACED
Open this question