50+ Poetry Quiz Questions and Answers

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Round 1: Easy Poetry Trivia Questions

1. Which poet wrote The Raven?
2. Wilfred Owen is famous for writing poems about which war?
3. How many syllables are in the first line of a haiku?
4. Which Robert Frost poem begins with the line ‘Two roads diverged in a yellow wood’?
5. Complete the line: ‘Shall I compare thee to a ___?’
6. What kind of flower does William Wordsworth describe in the first stanza of I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud?
7. ‘Milk and Honey’ and ‘The Sun and her Flowers’ are both collections by which contemporary poet?
8. The Hill We Climb was read by Amanda Gordan at the inauguration of which president?
9. How many lines are there in a sonnet?
10. Named after a city in Ireland, what kind of humorous poem follows an AABBA rhyme scheme?

Round 1: Easy Poetry Trivia Questions and Answers

1. Which poet wrote The Raven? Edgar Allan Poe
2. Wilfred Owen is famous for writing poems about which war? WWI
3. How many syllables are in the first line of a haiku? Five
4. Which Robert Frost poem begins with the line ‘Two roads diverged in a yellow wood’? The Road Not Taken
5. Complete the line: ‘Shall I compare thee to a ___?’ Summer’s Day
6. What kind of flower does William Wordsworth describe in the first stanza of I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud? Daffodils
7. ‘Milk and Honey’ and ‘The Sun and her Flowers’ are both collections by which contemporary poet? Rupi Kaur 
8. The Hill We Climb was read by Amanda Gordan at the inauguration of which president? Joe Biden
9. How many lines are there in a sonnet? 14
10. Named after a city in Ireland, what kind of humorous poem follows an AABBA rhyme scheme? A Limerick

Round 2: Poetry Multiple Choice Questions

1. In the first line of The Wasteland, what does T.S. Eliot proclaim to be ‘the cruellest month’?
   1. January
   2. April
   3. July
   4. November
2. Which of the following made-up creatures does not feature in Lewis Carol’s The Jabberwacky?
   1. Bandersnatch
   2. Jubjub Bird
   3. Mome Raths
   4. Galumpher
3. ‘On either side the river lie / Long fields of barley and of rye,’ are the first two lines of which romantic poem?
   1. The Charge of the Light Brigade
   2. The Lady of Shalott
   3. To Autumn
   4. So, we’ll go no more a roving
4. Why does Robert Frost say that he cannot stay admiring the beauty of the woods in ‘Stopping by the Woods on a Snowy Evening’?
   1. Because he is missed 
   2. Because someone is waiting for him
   3. Because he has to keep his promises
   4. Because the snow is falling fast
5. What is the name of the landlord’s daughter in Alfred Noyes’ The Highwayman?
   1. Bess
   2. Kate
   3. Jane 
   4. Fan
6. What form of poem is Percy Shelley’s Ozymandias?
   1. Ballad
   2. Sonnet
   3. Villanelle
   4. Elergy
7. Fill in the missing word from Edna St. Vincent Millay’s What Lips my Lips have Kissed, and Where, and Why: ‘but the rain is full of ___ tonight.’
   1. Grief
   2. Glass
   3. Gauze
   4. Ghosts
8. Which member of her family is represented by the moon in Sylvia Plath’s The Moon and the Yew Tree?
   1. Her mother
   2. Her father
   3. Her sister
   4. Her daughter
9. In the poem Valentine, what does Carol Ann Duffy use as a metaphor for the realities of love?
   1. A bicycle 
   2. A pencil
   3. An onion
   4. A riddle
10. Mahmoud Darwish, writer of I Came From There and Passport, is the national poet of which country?
    1. Egypt
    2. Palestine
    3. Algeria
    4. Syria

Round 2: Poetry Multiple Choice Questions and Answers

1. In the first line of The Wasteland, what does T.S. Eliot proclaim to be ‘the cruellest month’? B. April
2. Which of the following made-up creatures does not feature in Lewis Carol’s The Jabberwacky? D. Galumpher
3. ‘On either side the river lie / Long fields of barley and of rye,’ are the first two lines of which romantic poem? B. The Lady of Shalott
4. Why does Robert Frost say that he cannot stay admiring the beauty of the woods in ‘Stopping by the Woods on a Snowy Evening’? C. Because he has to keep his promises
5. What is the name of the landlord’s daughter in Alfred Noyes’ The Highwayman? A. Bess
6. What form of poem is Percy Shelley’s Ozymandias? B. Sonnet
7. Fill in the missing word from Edna St. Vincent Millay’s What Lips my Lips have Kissed, and Where, and Why: ‘but the rain is full of ___ tonight.’ d. Ghosts
8. Which member of her family is represented by the moon in Sylvia Plath’s The Moon and the Yew Tree? A. Her mother
9. In the poem Valentine, what does Carol Ann Duffy use as a metaphor for the realities of love? C. An onion
10. Mahmoud Darwish, writer of I Came From There and Passport, is the national poet of which country? B. Palestine

Round 3: Poetry Quiz – True or False

1. A haiku has a total of 17 syllables.
2. The Epic of Gilgamesh is the oldest known poem.
3. Percy Shelley, author of Ozymandias, was the brother of Mary Shelley who wrote Frankenstein.
4. Sylvia Plath published her first poem at the age of 16.
5. Robert Browning’s My Last Duchess was inspired by the real life Duchess of Ferrara who, like the character in the poem, died very young under mysterious circumstances.
6. Shakespeare addressed all of his sonnets to a young man, often called the ‘Fair Youth.’
7. The Devil is the main character of Paradise Lost.
8. Lewis Carol included The Jabberwocky in Alice in Wonderland.
9. Ode to a Nightingale, When I Have Fears and Hyperion are all poems by Christina Rosetti.
10. Metromania is the fear of poetry.

Round 3: Poetry Quiz Answers – True or False

1. A haiku has a total of 17 syllables. True
2. The Epic of Gilgamesh is the oldest known poem. True
3. Percy Shelley, author of Ozymandias, was the brother of Mary Shelley who wrote Frankenstein. False, she was his wife
4. Sylvia Plath published her first poem at the age of 16. False, she published her first poem at the age of 9
5. Robert Browning’s My Last Duchess was inspired by the real life Duchess of Ferrara who, like the character in the poem, died very young under mysterious circumstances. True
6. Shakespeare addressed all of his sonnets to a young man, often called the ‘Fair Youth.’ False, but he did address 126 poems to the Fair Youth
7. The Devil is the main character of Paradise Lost. True 
8. Lewis Carol included The Jabberwocky in Alice in Wonderland. False, but it does appear in the sequel Through the Looking Glass
9. Ode to a Nightingale, When I Have Fears and Hyperion are all poems by Christina Rosetti. False, they’re by John Keats
10. Metromania is the fear of poetry. False, it’s the compulsion to write poetry

Round 4: Medium Poetry Trivia Questions

1. In which form of poetry does the first letter of each line spell out a word or message?
2. Who is the national bard of Scotland?
3. Which Dylan Thomas poem is quoted by the president in the 1996 disaster film Independence Day?
4. Complete the line from The Soldier: ‘there’s some corner of a foreign field / that is forever ___ .’
5. Walt Whitman wrote O Captain! My Captain! about the death of which US president?
6. When he said ‘I awoke one morning and found myself famous,’ Lord Byron was describing the sudden popularity of which of his poems?
7. Complete the line: ‘Some say the world will end in fire / some say in ___. ‘
8. The christmas carol In the Bleak Midwinter is based on a poem by which Victorian poet?
9. What kind of fruit does William Carlos Williams apologise for eating in This Is Just To Say?
10. Who is the current Poet Laureate of the United Kingdom, taking over the position in January 2023?

Round 4: Medium Poetry Trivia Questions and Answers

1. In which form of poetry does the first letter of each line spell out a word or message? Acrostic Poetry
2. Who is the national bard of Scotland? Robert Burns
3. Which Dylan Thomas poem is quoted by the president in the 1996 disaster film Independence Day? Don’t go Gentle into that Good Night
4. Complete the line from The Soldier: ‘there’s some corner of a foreign field / that is forever ___ .’ England
5. Walt Whitman wrote O Captain! My Captain! about the death of which US president? Abraham Lincoln
6. When he said ‘I awoke one morning and found myself famous,’ Lord Byron was describing the sudden popularity of which of his poems? Childe Harold’s Pilgrimage
7. Complete the line: ‘Some say the world will end in fire / some say in ___. ‘ Ice
8. The christmas carol In the Bleak Midwinter is based on a poem by which Victorian poet? Christina Rossetti
9. What kind of fruit does William Carlos Williams apologise for eating in This Is Just To Say?  Plums
10. Who is the current Poet Laureate of the United Kingdom, taking over the position in January 2023? Simon Armitage

Round 5: Hard Poetry Trivia Questions

1. In poetry analysis, iambs, trochees, dactyls and spondees are all examples of what?
2. How many parts are there in The Rhyme of the Ancient Mariner?
3. Which 20th century American poet is portrayed by Daniel Radcliff in the 2013 film ‘Kill Your Darlings’?
4. What is the longest poem in the world, with over 1.8 million worlds?
5. Who was the first poet to be buried in Poets’ Corner of Westminster Abbey?
6. Which poem begins with the line ‘What happens to a dream deferred’?
7. Which American writer famously described himself as a ‘small eye poet’?
8. Complete the line from The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock: ‘In the room the women come and go / Talking of ___ .’
9. The lines ‘Shine on me, sunshine / Rain on me, rain’ come from which Maya Angelou poem?
10. Who describes their earliest memories in Paradise Lost, saying ‘I found myself reposed, / under a shade, on flowers, much wondering where / And what I was’ ?

Round 5: Hard Poetry Trivia Questions and Answers

1. In poetry analysis, iambs, trochees, dactyls and spondees are all examples of what? Feet
2. How many parts are there in The Rhyme of the Ancient Mariner? Seven
3. Which 20th century American poet is portrayed by Daniel Radcliff in the 2013 film ‘Kill Your Darlings’? Allen Ginsberg
4. What is the longest poem in the world, with over 1.8 million worlds? Mahabharata
5. Who was the first poet to be buried in Poets’ Corner of Westminster Abbey? Geoffrey Chaucerg
6. Which poem begins with the line ‘What happens to a dream deferred’? Harlem by Langston Hughes
7. Which American writer famously described himself as a ‘small eye poet’? E.E. Cummings
8. Complete the line from The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock: ‘In the room the women come and go / Talking of ___ .’ Michelangelo
9. The lines ‘Shine on me, sunshine / Rain on me, rain’ come from which Maya Angelou poem? Woman Work
10. Who describes their earliest memories in Paradise Lost, saying ‘I found myself reposed, / under a shade, on flowers, much wondering where / And what I was’ ? Eve

Round 6: Bonus Poetry Trivia Questions

1. Which Robert Burns poem is famously sung on New Year’s Eve?

Round 6: Bonus Poetry Trivia Questions and Answers

1. Which Robert Burns poem is famously sung on New Year’s Eve? Auld Lang Syne

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