Note, however, that doesn't mean the hardest trivia questions. It’s remarkably easy to come up with dozens of hard trivia questions that require knowledge too obscure to answer -- or to be any fun. We’ll share a few examples of bad trivia questions below for reference.
One secret to creating great (and fun) trivia questions that aren't too challenging is to come up with ones that can have more than one correct answer. That way, you allow people to plumb the depths of their knowledge, and find not only the right answer but also enjoy that boost of self-confidence that comes with getting it right.
And really, when you’re having a trivia night with friends, isn’t that more important than stumping everyone? If you agree with that sentiment, then, by all means, avoid questions like those found in the first segment
Skip ahead:
- Hard Trivia Questions About American History
- Hard Trivia Questions About Geography
- Hard Trivia Questions About The Human Body
- Hard Trivia Questions About Sports
- Hard Trivia Questions About World War II
- Hard Trivia Questions About Everything Else!
Examples of Bad Trivia Questions for Your Game Night
Here are five examples of trivia questions that are too difficult to be considered fun. Why? Because they are almost surely unanswerable by most players. Thus, they risk leaving people feeling as if they came up short.
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1. What is the capital of Togo? (It’s Benin, but unless players have prepared specifically for geography, this is probably too obscure.)
2. What is the third-tallest mountain on Earth? (It’s Kangchenjunga, in the Himalayas, in the border region between Nepal and India. However, almost no one is going to readily answer that.)
3. What is the 10th decimal digit of pi? (It’s 5, but people who can recite pi to 3.14159, a standard number of digits recalled, will feel they perhaps should have known.)
4. Who was Teddy Roosevelt’s first lady? (It was Edith Kermit Carow Roosevelt, but this is a “gotcha” question, because it's rather obscure, and because she wasn't his first wife.)
5. Name five former U.S. secretaries of state. (There are plenty to name, but this question asks for too many responses to be much fun!)
Now, let’s move on to some great hard trivia questions.
Hard Trivia Questions About American History
These questions have a single correct answer. Plus, U.S. history is a subject in which most American citizens can be expected to have at least some grounding.
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1. What is the oldest European-founded city in the United States? (St. Augustine, Florida, founded in 1565)
2. Name all four U.S. presidents who were assassinated while in office. (Abraham Lincoln, James Garfield, William McKinley and John F. Kennedy)
3. In which war did the most Americans die? (the American Civil War, in which an estimated 620,000 men, or 2 percent of the U.S. population at the time, lost their lives)
4. In what year did the first Ford Model T sell? (1908)
5. Who was the first U.S. president to appear on television? (Franklin Delano Roosevelt, on April 30, 1939, during the opening session of the New York World's Fair)
6. What does the middle initial "S" stand for in U.S. President Harry S. Truman's name? (This is a little tricky. Truman had no middle name. His parents gave him the middle initials as a compromise to honor both grandfathers, Anderson Shipp Truman and Solomon Young)
Hard Trivia Questions About Geography
Most of these have multiple correct responses, which is a great way to make a hard trivia question a bit easier to field. And it's more fun for a wider group of participants.
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1. In what state is the tallest mountain in the continental United States? (California)
2. Name two of the five deepest points in the world’s oceans. (Mariana Trench, Puerto Rico Trench/Milwaukee Deep, Java Trench, South Sandwich Trench, Molloy Hole)
3. Name five countries whose names begin with the letter G. (Gabon, Gambia, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Grenada, Guatemala, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana)
4. What is tallest mountain in Australia? (Mount Kosciuszko)
5. What is the longest river in Europe? (Volga)
6. Which country's flag features a dragon? (Three possible answers: Bhutan, Malta or Wales)
Hard Trivia Questions About the Human Body
These questions can be fun with players of different ages. Kids often will know more about the human body than adults do, because they more recently learned about it.
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1. Name the three bones found in the inner ear. (Hammer, anvil, stirrup)
2. How many total chromosomes does a human cell have? (46 – 23 pairs, but 26 total)
3. What is the second-biggest organ in the human body? (Liver)
4. Name four types of bone found below your pelvis. (Femur, patella, tibia, fibula, tarsals, metatarsals, phalanges)
5. Does an average head of full hair have about 1,000, 7,500, 10,000 or 15,000 hairs? (10,000)
Hard Trivia Questions About Sports
These questions mostly have single answers, as statistics are such an important part of sports.
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1. Which sport is older, basketball or American football? (Football)
2. In which decade was baseball’s first perfect game thrown? (1880s)
3. Name five positions on a soccer/football team. (Goalkeeper, sweeper, center back, full back, defensive midfielder, central midfielder, attacking midfielder, wing back, winger, striker, forward)
4. This Major League Baseball team (currently) has the second-most World Series wins. (Cardinals, 11)
5. Who (currently) holds the all-time point record in the National Basketball Association? (Kareem Abdul-Jabar, 38,387)
6. In which year was the first football World Cup held? (1930)
Hard Trivia Questions About World War II
What can we say? People love trivia about the Second World War.
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1. On what day did Nazi Germany invade Poland? (Sept. 1, 1939)
2. Name three European countries that remained neutral during World War II. (Ireland, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey)
3. On what date was victory declared in Europe? (May 8, 1945)
4. Name three types of American World War II fighter planes. (P-51 Mustang, P-47 Thunderbolt, P-38 Lightning, P-40 Warhawk, F4 Corsair, F6 Hellcat, P-63 Kingcobra, etc.)
5. What was the deadliest battle of World War II? (Battle of Stalingrad, with approximately 2 million casualties)
Hard Trivia Questions About Everything Else!
Sometimes, it's more fun to take a wide-open approach. So here are 10 more great trivia questions from all sorts of topic areas.
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1. How many legs does a centipede have? (30)
2. Name one of the only African countries that were never colonized. (Ethiopia and Liberia)
3. How many humps does a dromedary camel have? (One)
4. Who was the youngest U.S. president ever? (Teddy Roosevelt, at 42)
5. In which decade were the first artificial Christmas trees manufactured? (1930s)
6. What is the hardest natural substance on Earth? (Diamond)
7. What is the best-selling album of all time? (Michael Jackson’s Thriller)
8. Who was the youngest British prime minister ever? (William Pitt the Younger, at 24)
9. What is the only mammal that is fully covered in scales? (Pangolin)
10. Who was the first Disney princess? (Snow White)
The World Needs More You: How to Be Successful at Being Yourself
We all aspire to be successful in life, and sometimes we get so lost in the cloudy journey of fulfilling these dreams that we miss out on the important things.
In the quest for more "success," many are tempted to forfeit their true essence to become someone they are not. The world even advises you to "fake it till you make it" -- and no wonder we have a generation of people whose self-image is governed by Instagram likes and Facebook shares. A generation of young adults who are too scared to tap into their inner being and unravel the riches of their true personalities for fear of not being "accepted" by the majority.
READ: The "Risky" Road to Connection: Why You Must Dare to Be Yourself
Yet becoming someone you are not is a great injustice, both to yourself and to society. The world already has too many fakes. It is counting on you to embrace your uniqueness and dare to make a difference. You owe it to yourself to stand out from the crowd, reject what doesn't reflect your personality and uphold what is right and fair.
The World Needs More You: How to Be Successful at Being Yourself
Winning in any facet of life, be it your career or relationship, can only be sustained by first becoming successful at being yourself. The real challenge is to not succumb to social pressure and societal mediocrity. Step out from your comfort zone and live life simply being you.
The following tips will help you get started.
1 . Reimagine your potential
The image you have of yourself is so important that it ultimately determines how others see and treat you. A low self-image is quickly followed by a low self-esteem and people won't be slack to use that to your disadvantage.
You must learn to see beyond your present circumstances and visualize what you hope to become. Your reality is highly dependent on the quality of your imagination. Do away with thoughts of doubts and fear and begin to trust in your skills and abilities.
READ: Live Like You Already Have It, and You Will
It doesn't matter what has happened in the past or what has been said concerning you, make a resolute decision today to begin to think more highly of yourself and learn to appreciate what makes you different.
2 . Surround yourself with the right people
Desist from being around negative and pessimistic people who see nothing but all that's wrong with the world; people who are not interested in rendering value, but are more preoccupied with presenting a false image of themselves in an attempt to be liked and approved by others. Negative vibes produce negative attitude.
READ: 4 Tips to Help You Attract the Right Kinds of Friends
Surround yourself with folks who do not just talk, but live out what they preach. Who don't feel bound by the status quo, but are ready to face life at the edge of their potential.
3 . Quit comparing yourself to others
When you keep looking at others to find validation of who you are, you end up disappointed and discouraged much of the time.
There are millions of people out there who would certainly appear to be more talented, prettier, richer, stronger, or more successful than you. The key is to accept this fact and never rate yourself in comparison to another's abilities.
READ: Mind the Comparison Trap: Why Life's Race Is Only Against Yourself
Learn to appreciate people who possess the skills you desire, and learn from them if you can. They may have special talents that you don't have, but you have something special they don't have: your own uniqueness, style and personality. Build on these and you'll eventually discover that you can do stuff in a way that no one else can.
4 . Create your purpose
Look within yourself to find what you love the most, and how you can bring value to someone else. It doesn't necessarily have to be anything grandiose at the moment -- even the smallest act of service can make a big difference to someone's life.
READ: Find Your Why: How to Discover Your Professional Purpose
The greatest disservice to one's self is selfishness and self-preoccupation. The fastest way to become successful at being yourself is to become a blessing and a solution to someone else.�
5 . Stand up to criticism
You will never be free from people who will be apt to point out your mistakes and flaws. But it doesn't matter -- people are always bound to criticize what they fear. To be successful at being yourself, you must realize that people will try to break you with destructive words just to get the worse out of you. Don't let them!
Every successful person today has faced major criticism and opposition along the way, and they all did one thing in common: they kept moving.
READ: The Self-Growth Guide to Making Criticism Your Friend
You must therefore not be scared to say NO to things that are contrary to your values and principles. Stand for what you believe in, pursue a dream, and never give up.
6. Never seek appreciation from others
This doesn't imply that you shouldn't work hard or be committed to everything you do. But doing things for the purpose of gaining others' appreciation is the wrong motive, and ultimately won't bring long-lasting satisfaction.
Even when you do things for the right reasons, you shouldn't be surprised when people don't thank you or appreciate your work. Not everyone has your heart. You should keep giving your best nonetheless, and only seek appreciation from yourself.
Closing words
There are over 7 billion people in the world and no one is exactly like you. This is your power. Embrace it, cherish it, and develop it! Don't be scared of standing out and never be intimidated when you encounter failure. The greatest successes in life come from having the freedom to fail.
Make mistakes and learn quickly. And at the end of your story, let it never be written that you lived someone else's life. Be the best of you there can possibly be. The world needs more of you.