Pick Some Old-Timey Words and We'll Tell You How Old-Fashioned You Are

By: Teresa McGlothlin
Estimated Completion Time
2 min
Pick Some Old-Timey Words and We'll Tell You How Old-Fashioned You Are
Image: Steve Clancy Photography/ Moment/ Getty Images

About This Quiz

Words are a lot of fun, but old-timey words were nothing short of artful. Instead of calling someone a gossip or a nosy-rosy, generations before would have called them a "quidnunc." Instead of saying "shoemaker," they would have said "cordwainer." How much do you have in common with the folks who may have used words like these? Pick some, and we'll tell you how old fashioned you are!

To make things a little more fun, you'll read the questions written in old-time speak. Once you figure out how to get past the "thous" and the "-eths," you'll understand which word you feel is the most appropriate to choose. Peradventure, you have no idea what any of them mean, you are equipped with a hint button that will save thy soul from any confusion. 

Are you as old-fashioned as apple pie, or are you as newfangled as the iPhone 11? Pick the words you like most, that feel right or that make you giggle. The way you choose them matters as much as the option you pick. By the time you finish, your level of being modern or being a traditionalist will be obvious. Doest thou thinketh thou can make it without needing to cover thy ankles? Let's find out!


1. fall
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If thou falleth and landeth on ye olde backside, what hath thou falleth on?
Breech
Clew
Corse
Filigig

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2. feather
Tuomas Lehtinen/ Moment/ Getty Image
Where dost thou goeth to shaketh ye tail feather?
A hootenanny
A soiree
A shindig
A wing-ding

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3. cat lady
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What doth thou calleth the dotty olde woman who collecteth cats?
Bedlam
Gammer
Dame
Mooncalf

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4. criminal
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Which old-timey word wouldst thou useth to describeth a criminal?
Blackguard
Scoundrel
Rapscallion
Knave

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5. wife
ZU_09/ DigitalVision Vectors/ Getty Images
What doest the sir calleth his mistress?
Doxy
Strumpet
Damsel
Fishwife

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6. sweetheart
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Mightn't thou calleth thy sweetheart one of these words?
Leman
Palfrey
Pelf
Rover

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7. book
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Which old-timey word doest thou thinkest means bookseller?
Husbandman
Bibliophile
Fishwife
Esquire

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8. thief
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Mightn't ye useth one of these words to describeth a thief?
Jackroller
Freebooter
Brigand
Bandit

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9. fire
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What archaic tool wouldst thou useth to poke a fire?
Sea coal
Salamander
Taiga
Steed

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10. pawnbroker
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Can thou chooseth a word that means pawnbroker?
Turnkey
Wrigth
Uncle
Waits

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11. jewerly
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Wouldst thou use any of these old-timey words to refer to a piece of jewelry?
Bijoux
Bodkin
Cruse
Clout

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12. knit
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Which of these things wouldst thou useth to knit a scarf?
Fell
Habiliment
Clew
Pate

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13. no
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Methinks thou doest know the word for "no."
Nay
Naught
Nowt
Nigh

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14. coward
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Can thou pick thee word that meaneth coward?
Milksop
Caitiff
Faintheart
Poltroon

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15. drink
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What wouldst thou calleth thy drink using an archaic word?
Aperitif
Rotgut
Potation
Aqua vitae

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16. farmer
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Doest thou knoweth the word that means ye old farmer?
Stockman
Granger
Husbandwife
Plowman

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17. brag
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Wouldst thou use one of these words to describe a braggart?
Scaramouch
Mooncalf
Schoolman
Quidnunc

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18. horse
Catherine Falls Commercial/ Moment/ Getty Images
Which word for horse doest thou fancy?
Palfrey
Equid
Gelding
Courser

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19. singer
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What word wouldst thou useth to describe Beyonce's occupation?
Precentor
Melodist
Hazen
Crooner

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20. lazy
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Wouldst thou be able to picketh the word for lazy?
Slugabed
Otiose
Indolent
Laggard

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21. mad work
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If thou did not favor thy company, how mightn't thou describe them?
Nithing
Lurdan
Codswallop
Jade

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22. boss
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Can thou picketh the word thou wouldst calleth thy boss?
Gudgeon
Overseer
Froward
Communicant

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23. wagon
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Wouldst thou kindly picketh the archaic name for a wagon?
Coach
Schooner
Landship
Wain

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24. smart
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Doest thou know a word that references a smart person?
Clerk
Schoolman
Carl
Cadet

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25. knife
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Mightn't you call a knife oneth these things?
Bodkin
Bayonette
Cutlass
Sickle

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26. kiss
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Will thou please picketh a word that meaneth the same as kiss?
Snog
Slouster
Smooch
Buss

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27. young woman
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What word doest thou use to address a young woman?
Cadet
Dandiprat
Damsel
Dame

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28. prison
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Where wouldeth thou goeth to serveth time for a crime?
Hoosgow
Jael
Pokey
Clink

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29. lawn
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Methinks thou shan't pick the word for lawn? Can ye?
Catacomb
Charnel
Boothill
Garth

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30. jeans
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What wouldst thou calleth a pair of jeans?
Trousers
Dungarees
Chaps
Jaens

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You Got: