Sample Questions from This Quiz
1. On which date is Halloween always celebrated?
2. The word "Halloween" is a shortened form of which older phrase?
3. Halloween is believed to have grown partly out of which ancient Celtic festival?
4. Before pumpkins became common, what vegetable were the original Jack-o'-lanterns carved from?
5. In Irish folklore, the Jack-o'-lantern is named after which trickster character?
6. Which medieval door-to-door custom is most often cited as the origin of trick-or-treating?
...and 14 more challenging questions covering history, records and pop culture!
Show all 20 questions and answers (text version)
- On which date is Halloween always celebrated?
Answer: October 31 — Halloween is always celebrated on October 31, the evening before All Saints' Day.
- The word "Halloween" is a shortened form of which older phrase?
Answer: All Hallows' Even — Halloween comes from "All Hallows' Even," meaning the evening before All Hallows' (All Saints') Day.
- Halloween is believed to have grown partly out of which ancient Celtic festival?
Answer: Samhain — Samhain marked the end of the harvest and the start of the darker half of the year in Celtic tradition.
- Before pumpkins became common, what vegetable were the original Jack-o'-lanterns carved from?
Answer: Turnips — Irish tradition carved lanterns from turnips (and sometimes swedes) before pumpkins took over in America.
- In Irish folklore, the Jack-o'-lantern is named after which trickster character?
Answer: Stingy Jack — Stingy Jack is said to have twice outwitted the Devil and been left to wander the earth with only a burning coal for light.
- Which medieval door-to-door custom is most often cited as the origin of trick-or-treating?
Answer: Souling — Souling involved going house to house around All Souls' Day, offering prayers for the dead in exchange for small cakes.
- Large-scale immigration from which country in the 1840s helped spread Halloween traditions across America?
Answer: Ireland — Irish immigration during and after the Irish Famine of the 1840s carried Halloween customs widely into the US.
- What are the two traditional colours of Halloween?
Answer: Orange and black — Orange represents the autumn harvest and firelight; black represents the dark half of the year.
- What day of the week does Halloween fall on in 2026?
Answer: Saturday — Halloween 2026 falls on Saturday, 31 October.
- Which nocturnal flying mammal is a classic Halloween symbol?
Answer: Bat — Bats are the only mammal capable of true sustained flight, and their nighttime habits made them a natural Halloween symbol.
- What is a group of witches traditionally called?
Answer: A coven — A group of witches is traditionally called a coven.
- What is the informal term for a fear of Halloween?
Answer: Samhainophobia — Samhainophobia, named after Samhain, is the informal term for an intense fear of Halloween.
- Which Christian holy day falls on 1 November, right after Halloween?
Answer: All Saints' Day — All Saints' Day is kept on 1 November; All Souls' Day follows the day after, on 2 November.
- In October 2025, a UK-grown pumpkin nicknamed "Muggle" set a new Guinness World Record. For what?
Answer: Heaviest pumpkin ever grown — Twin brothers Ian and Stuart Paton grew the record-breaking pumpkin, weighed and confirmed by Guinness World Records in October 2025.
- Roughly how much did the 2025 record-breaking pumpkin "Muggle" weigh?
Answer: About 2,819 lbs (1,279 kg) — "Muggle" weighed 2,819 lbs 4 oz (1,278.8 kg), also setting a record for circumference.
- "Will you walk into my parlor?" is the opening line of which classic poem about a spider and a fly?
Answer: "The Spider and the Fly" by Mary Howitt — Mary Howitt's 1829 poem "The Spider and the Fly" is still widely read during the Halloween season.
- Which 2017 horror film, based on a Stephen King novel, became one of the highest-grossing horror movies ever made?
Answer: It — "It" (2017), based on Stephen King's novel, grossed over $700 million worldwide, a record for the genre at the time.
- What is the fear of the number 13 called?
Answer: Triskaidekaphobia — Triskaidekaphobia is the fear of the number 13, often associated with the spooky reputation of Friday the 13th.
- In the "Peanuts" comic strip and TV specials, what does Linus wait for every Halloween?
Answer: The Great Pumpkin — Linus famously waits in the pumpkin patch each year for the arrival of the Great Pumpkin.
- According to Samhain tradition, what was believed to happen on the night of 31 October?
Answer: The boundary between the living and the dead grew thin — Samhain was seen as a liminal time when the boundary between the world of the living and the dead was thought to grow thin.
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How many questions are in the Halloween quiz?
20 questions, covering Halloween history, the jack-o'-lantern legend, traditions, records and pop culture. Each question has four multiple-choice answers.
Is the Halloween quiz free to play?
Yes, the quiz is completely free, with no sign-up required. You can restart and retake it as many times as you like.
What age group is the Halloween quiz suitable for?
The quiz is designed for ages 8 and up, mixing easier questions about Halloween basics with harder ones about records and history, so it works for both kids and adults.
Can I see the correct answer if I get a question wrong?
Yes. After you submit an answer, the quiz highlights the correct choice and shows a short explanation before you move to the next question.
