William Shakespeare Trivia
William Shakespeare trivia explores the life, works, and legacy of the Elizabethan and Jacobean playwright widely regarded as one of the most influential authors in history. From famous tragedies and comedies to enduring quotes and theatrical lore, this page offers a lively mix of easy, funny, family-friendly, and challenging questions for readers of all levels.
Easy William Shakespeare Trivia
13 questions
These easy William Shakespeare trivia questions are great for beginners and kids around age 12 and under.
Question 1
In what town was William Shakespeare born?
Answer: Stratford-upon-Avon
Shakespeare was born in Stratford-upon-Avon.
Question 2
Which English county contains Stratford-upon-Avon?
Answer: Warwickshire
Stratford-upon-Avon is in Warwickshire, England.
Question 3
Name the Shakespeare tragedy centered on Prince Hamlet.?
Answer: Hamlet
Shakespeare wrote Hamlet.
Question 4
Which famous Shakespeare play tells the story of Romeo and Juliet?
Answer: Romeo and Juliet
Shakespeare wrote Romeo and Juliet.
Question 5
What is the title of Shakespeare's Scottish tragedy about Macbeth?
Answer: Macbeth
Shakespeare wrote Macbeth.
Question 6
Which Shakespeare tragedy features the Moor Othello?
Answer: Othello
Shakespeare wrote Othello.
Question 7
Which Shakespeare play follows the aging king Lear?
Answer: King Lear
Shakespeare wrote King Lear.
Question 8
What Roman tragedy by Shakespeare focuses on Caesar's assassination?
Answer: Julius Caesar
Shakespeare wrote Julius Caesar.
Question 9
Who was William Shakespeare's wife?
Answer: Anne Hathaway
Anne Hathaway was Shakespeare's wife.
Question 10
What was the name of Shakespeare's mother?
Answer: Mary Arden
Mary Arden was Shakespeare's mother.
Question 11
Who was Shakespeare's father?
Answer: John Shakespeare
John Shakespeare was Shakespeare's father.
Question 12
Before 1603, what was Shakespeare's acting company called?
Answer: Lord Chamberlain's Men
Before 1603, Shakespeare's company was the Lord Chamberlain's Men.
Question 13
What new name did Shakespeare's company take in 1603?
Answer: King's Men
In 1603, the company became the King's Men.
William Shakespeare Family Trivia
12 questions
These family William Shakespeare trivia questions are built for mixed-age game nights, classrooms, and groups.
Question 1
On what date was William Shakespeare baptized?
Answer: 26 April 1564
Shakespeare was baptized on 26 April 1564.
Question 2
In which year did Shakespeare die?
Answer: 1616
Shakespeare died in 1616.
Question 3
What year did Shakespeare marry Anne Hathaway?
Answer: 1582
Shakespeare married Anne Hathaway in 1582.
Question 4
Anne Hathaway came from which village near Stratford-upon-Avon?
Answer: Shottery
Anne Hathaway was from Shottery near Stratford-upon-Avon.
Question 5
Who was Shakespeare's elder daughter?
Answer: Susanna Hall
Shakespeare's elder daughter was Susanna Hall.
Question 6
What was the name of Shakespeare's younger daughter?
Answer: Judith Shakespeare
Shakespeare's younger daughter was Judith Shakespeare.
Question 7
Who was Shakespeare's only son?
Answer: Hamnet Shakespeare
Shakespeare's only son was Hamnet Shakespeare.
Question 8
Which man married Shakespeare's daughter Susanna?
Answer: John Hall
John Hall married Susanna.
Question 9
What was John Hall's profession?
Answer: Physician
John Hall was a physician.
Question 10
Who married Shakespeare's daughter Judith?
Answer: Thomas Quiney
Thomas Quiney married Judith.
Question 11
What trade did Shakespeare's father John practice?
Answer: Glover
John Shakespeare worked is a glover.
Question 12
Mary Arden belonged to which Warwickshire family?
Answer: Arden family
Mary Arden came from the Arden family of Warwickshire.
Fun William Shakespeare Trivia
13 questions
These fun William Shakespeare trivia questions highlight surprising moments and playful facts for game-night groups.
Question 1
Which narrative poem by Shakespeare shares a title with a goddess and a handsome youth?
Answer: Venus and Adonis
Shakespeare wrote the narrative poem Venus and Adonis.
Question 2
To whom did Shakespeare dedicate Venus and Adonis?
Answer: Henry Wriothesley
He dedicated Venus and Adonis to Henry Wriothesley, Earl of Southampton.
Question 3
What is the title of Shakespeare's other major narrative poem besides Venus and Adonis?
Answer: The Rape of Lucrece
Shakespeare also wrote The Rape of Lucrece.
Question 4
Which indoor theatre did Shakespeare's company later use?
Answer: Blackfriars Theatre
Shakespeare's company later used the indoor Blackfriars Theatre.
Question 5
Who was a leading actor in Shakespeare's company?
Answer: Richard Burbage
Richard Burbage was a leading actor in Shakespeare's company.
Question 6
Which First Folio co-publisher was named John?
Answer: John Heminge
John Heminge helped publish Shakespeare's First Folio.
Question 7
Which colleague helped publish the First Folio alongside Heminge?
Answer: Henry Condell
Henry Condell helped publish Shakespeare's First Folio.
Question 8
The First Folio came out in what year?
Answer: 1623
The First Folio was published in 1623.
Question 9
How many plays were preserved in the First Folio?
Answer: 36
The First Folio preserved 36 Shakespeare plays.
Question 10
Who praised Shakespeare in Palladis Tamia in 1598?
Answer: Francis Meres
Francis Meres praised Shakespeare in Palladis Tamia in 1598.
Question 11
Whose tribute appears in the First Folio and is especially famous?
Answer: Ben Jonson
Ben Jonson wrote a famous tribute in Shakespeare's First Folio.
Question 12
Who organized the big Shakespeare Jubilee in Stratford-upon-Avon in 1769?
Answer: David Garrick
David Garrick organized the major Shakespeare Jubilee in 1769.
Question 13
Who published the first substantial biography of Shakespeare in 1709?
Answer: Nicholas Rowe
Nicholas Rowe published the first substantial biography of Shakespeare in 1709.
Funny William Shakespeare Trivia
13 questions
These funny William Shakespeare trivia questions highlight playful moments, odd facts, and inside jokes.
Question 1
Shakespeare's will famously left Anne Hathaway which bed?
Answer: Second-best bed
His will leaves Anne Hathaway his 'second-best bed.'.
Question 2
Which character ends up wearing a donkey's head in A Midsummer Night's Dream?
Answer: Bottom
Bottom is given the head of a donkey.
Question 3
Who is the wonderfully muddled comic constable in Much Ado About Nothing?
Answer: Dogberry
Dogberry is the comic constable in Much Ado About Nothing.
Question 4
Which larger-than-life comic figure appears in Henry IV, Part 1?
Answer: Falstaff
Falstaff appears in Henry IV, Part 1.
Question 5
Falstaff pops up again in which merry Shakespeare play?
Answer: The Merry Wives of Windsor
Falstaff also appears in The Merry Wives of Windsor.
Question 6
In Hamlet, which comic workers chat in the graveyard scene?
Answer: Gravediggers
The gravediggers scene appears in Hamlet.
Question 7
Who provides the comic-relief scene in Macbeth right after Duncan's murder?
Answer: The porter
The porter scene in Macbeth provides comic relief after Duncan's murder.
Question 8
What jealousy-flavored insult did Shakespeare coin in Othello?
- A.Wild-goose chase
- B.Heart of gold
- C.Tower of strength
- D.Green-eyed monster
Answer: Green-eyed monster
Shakespeare coined 'green-eyed monster' in Othello.
Question 9
The line 'Some are born great, some achieve greatness' belongs to which play?
- A.Macbeth
- B.Twelfth Night
- C.Much Ado About Nothing
- D.Hamlet
Answer: Twelfth Night
That line appears in Twelfth Night.
Question 10
What mini-play do the mechanicals put on in A Midsummer Night's Dream?
Answer: Pyramus and Thisbe
The mechanicals perform 'Pyramus and Thisbe.'.
Question 11
Which court fool adds wit to As You Like It?
Answer: Touchstone
Touchstone is the court fool in is You Like It.
Question 12
Who serves as the licensed fool in Twelfth Night?
Answer: Feste
Feste is the licensed fool in Twelfth Night.
Question 13
Name the clownish servant in The Merchant of Venice.?
Answer: Launcelot Gobbo
Launcelot Gobbo is a clownish servant in The Merchant of Venice.
Hard William Shakespeare Trivia
14 questions
These hard William Shakespeare trivia questions are for expert fans who want a real challenge.
Question 1
By what year do records place Shakespeare in London?
Answer: 1592
The Shakespeare and Company record places him in London by 1592.
Question 2
Who called Shakespeare an 'upstart crow' in 1592?
- A.Francis Meres
- B.Nicholas Rowe
- C.Robert Greene
- D.Ben Jonson
Answer: Robert Greene
Robert Greene alluded to Shakespeare is an 'upstart crow' in 1592.
Question 3
In what year did the Globe Theatre first open?
Answer: 1599
The Globe Theatre opened in 1599.
Question 4
The Globe burned during a performance of which play, and in what year did that happen?
Answer: Henry VIII in 1613
The Globe burned down during a performance of Henry VIII in 1613.
Question 5
One year after the fire, what year saw the Globe rebuilt?
Answer: 1614
The Globe was rebuilt in 1614.
Question 6
When did Shakespeare purchase New Place?
Answer: 1597
Shakespeare purchased New Place in 1597.
Question 7
Which district gave its name to the gatehouse property Shakespeare bought in 1613?
Answer: Blackfriars
He bought a gatehouse property in Blackfriars in 1613.
Question 8
In what month and year was Shakespeare's will signed?
Answer: March 1616
Shakespeare's will was signed in March 1616.
Question 9
What exact date is commonly given for Shakespeare's death?
Answer: 23 April 1616
Shakespeare died on 23 April 1616.
Question 10
Who became the King's Men's principal playwright after Shakespeare?
Answer: John Fletcher
John Fletcher succeeded Shakespeare is the King's Men's principal playwright.
Question 11
Which play was co-written by Shakespeare and John Fletcher about noble cousins?
Answer: The Two Noble Kinsmen
Shakespeare collaborated with John Fletcher on The Two Noble Kinsmen.
Question 12
Name the royal-history play Shakespeare collaborated on with John Fletcher.?
Answer: Henry VIII
Shakespeare collaborated with John Fletcher on Henry VIII.
Question 13
What year first saw Venus and Adonis in print?
Answer: 1593
Venus and Adonis was first published in 1593.
Question 14
The Rape of Lucrece first appeared in print in which year?
Answer: 1594
The Rape of Lucrece was first published in 1594.
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