The Elizabethan Renaissance gave us some of the best writers the world has ever known, including the Bard himself. William Shakespeare’s plays have confused, enlightened, and inspired generations of readers. Now you can test your knowledge of Shakespeare with our Shakespeare trivia quiz, and bite your thumb at your rivals!
Trade your kingdom for these Shakespeare trivia questions and answers! Set the scene, dim the lights, and get ready to see if the play’s the thing. These questions will have your history with Shakespeare put to the test. You might know why “all the world’s a stage,” but if you didn’t pay attention in school, your answers might prove, “what fools these mortals be!”
If Shakespeare isn’t exactly your literature style, check out some of our other quizzes, including Book Quotes, Harry Potter trivia questions, or Famous Authors! To quiz or not to quiz; that is the question!
Puck is a character in which Shakespeare play?
Twelfth Night
The Winter’s Tale
As You Like it
A Midsummer Nights Dream
In the Shakespeare play ‘Cymbeline’ – who is Cymbeline?
King of France
King of Denmark
King of Sicily
King of Britain
William Shakespeare was born in which English town?
Bradford
Hertford
Streatham
Stratford
Be not afeard the isle is full of noises’ is a quote from which Shakespearean character?
Puck
Fluellen
Caliban
Iago
Who won an Oscar for playing Elizabeth I in the 1998 film Shakespeare in Love?
Helen Mirren
Judi Dench
Maggie Smith
Meryl Streep
In the play ‘Othello’ what is the name of Othello’s wife?
Desdemona
Cassia
Emilia
Bianca
Shylock and Portia are names of characters from which Shakespeare play?
The Merchant of Venice
The Tempest
Romeo and Juliet
A Midsummer Nights Dream
In the play ‘Romeo and Juliet’, who is Escalus?
Juliet’s father
Romeo’s father
Juliet’s suitor
Prince of Verona
Who married Romeo and Juliet?
Friar John
Friar Laurence
The Pope
Friar Tuck
Which description would be appropriate for the play ‘Troilus and Cressida’?
Comedy
Tragedy
History
Romance
The play ‘Romeo and Juliet’ is set in which country?
Scotland
England
Spain
Italy
Which description would be appropriate for the play ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’?
Comedy
History
Tragedy
Romance
William Shakespeare is often referred to as the what of Avon?
Duke
Bard
Poet
Prince
Mercutio is a character in which play?
A Midsummer Night’s Dream
The Merchant of Venice
The Two Gentlemen of Verona
Romeo and Juliet
Which description would be appropriate for the play ‘Henry V’?
Comedy
History
Romance
Tragedy
In the Shakespeare play ‘Julius Caesar’, who is Caesar’s wife?
Cressida
Calpurnia
Andromache
Portia
Who was the father of Goneril, Regan and Cordelia?
Macbeth
Othello
Hamlet
King Lear
In the play ‘Romeo and Juliet’ – Juliet’s age is said to be what?
Fourteen
Sixteen
Fifteen
Thirteen
Which name did William Shakespeare give to his son?
Hamnet
Humbert
Hamlet
Horatio
The play Macbeth is set in which country?
Scotland
Italy
England
Ireland
In the play ‘Romeo and Juliet’ which title is held by Paris?
Lord
Count
Prince
King
In the play ‘The Taming of the Shrew’, what is the name of Katherina’s suitor?
Lucentio
Gremio
Petruchio
Hortensio
In what year did William Shakespeare die?
1756
1716
1656
1616
In which Shakespeare play is there cooking with nose of Turk and Tartar’s lips?
Romeo and Juliet
Hamlet
Macbeth
Othello
What is the fate of Romeo and Juliet in Shakespeare’s play?
He Dies; She Lives
They Both Live
He Lives; She Dies
They Both Die
In the Shakespeare play ‘Hamlet’, Hamlet is the Prince of which country?
Sweden
Wales
Denmark
Scotland
In the play ‘King Lear’ – Lear is King of what?
Denmark
Spain
Italy
Britain
In the play ‘Hamlet’, what is the name of Hamlet’s mother?
Gertrude
Griselda
Giselle
Gloria
What is Shakespeare’s shortest play?
All’s Well That Ends Well
The Comedy of Errors
As You Like It
The Merry Wives of Windsor
Which Shakespeare play has the subtitle, ‘The Moor of Venice’?
Coriolanus
The Tempest
Twelfth Night
Othello
Verona is the setting for more than one Shakespeare play. In which country is Verona?
Portugal
Italy
France
Spain
What is the name of the primary antagonist in the Shakespeare play ‘Othello’?
Iago
Edmund
Banquo
Polonius
Which description would be appropriate for the play ‘Love’s Labour’s Lost’?
Comedy
History
Tragedy
Romance
Which description would be appropriate for the play ‘Twelfth Night’?
History
Tragedy
Romance
Comedy
Complete the title of the play by William Shakespeare- A Midsummer Night’s ???
Comedy
Journey
Play
Dream
Which description would be appropriate for the play ‘Macbeth’?
Tragedy
Romance
History
Comedy
William Shakespeare had how many daughters?
Two
Zero
Three
One
In the play ‘Antony and Cleopatra’ – Cleopatra is Queen of which country?
Spain
Italy
Egypt
Morocco
Which Shakespeare character said ‘O, Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo?’?
Juliet
Helena
Desdemona
Ophelia
The line ‘To be or not to be’ comes from which Shakespeare play?
Hamlet
Cymbaline
Richard III
Othello
What is the name of The Queen of the Fairies in Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream?
Titania
Euphoria
Fantasia
Astoria
In the play ‘Othello’ what position is held by Othello?
Senator
General
King
Prince
Which character in Shakespeare was Prince of Tyre?
Cymbeline
Antipholus
Pericles
Leontes
Which description would be appropriate for the play ‘Romeo and Juliet’?
Romance
History
Comedy
Tragedy
William Shakespeare ‘s birthdate is unknown, but he was baptised in April of which year?
1604
1584
1544
1564
Which Shakespeare play opens amid thunder and lightning and a meeting of three witches?
Richard III
Macbeth
Hamlet
King Lear
Which Shakespeare play has the story of two sets of identical twins separated at birth as its central theme?
A Midsummer Night’s Dream
The Comedy of Errors
As You Like It
Twelfth Night
Regan is a daughter of which Shakespeare character?
King Lear
Macbeth
The Merchant of Venice
Timon of Athens
Complete the title of the play by William Shakespeare- Timon of ???
Athens
Argyll
Abilene
Amsterdam
The 2006 film ‘She’s the Man’, in which a girl pretends to be her brother, is a modern day version of which Shakespeare play?
The Comedy of Errors
The Merchant of Venice
A Midsummer Night’s Dream
Twelfth Night
Kenneth Branagh, Mel Gibson and Ethan Hawke have all played which Shakespearean character on film?
Brutus
King Lear
Richard II
Hamlet
What was the maiden name of Shakespeare’s mother, Mary?
Garden
Argus
Barter
Arden
Shakespeare’s ‘The Winter’s Tale’ contains the famous stage direction ‘Exit stage left – pursued by a _________’?
Bear
Horse
Ghost
Policeman
What was the name of William Shakespeare’s wife?
Jane Boleyn
Anne Boleyn
Anne Hathaway
Jane Hathaway
The Cole Porter musical ‘Kiss me Kate’ is based on which play by William Shakespeare?
The Comedy of Errors
The Taming of the Shrew
The Merry Wives of Windsor
Love’s Labour’s Lost
Which description would be appropriate for the play ‘Titus Andronicus’?
Tragedy
History
Comedy
Romance
Which of Shakespeare’s plays is set in Vienna?
The Winter’s Tale
Cymbeline
Measure for Measure
Pericles
In ‘Romeo and Juliet’, what is Romeo’s surname?
Escalus
Montague
Capulet
Paris
Nick Bottom is a character in which Shakespeare play?
A Midsummer Nights Dream
Twelfth Night
The Winter’s Tale
As You Like it
In Shakespeare’s play who killed Macbeth?
Banquo
Macduff
Duncan
Malcolm
The Shakespeare play ‘Love’s Labour’s Lost’ was followed by ‘Love’s Labour’s__________?
Found
Sought
Rewarded
Won
Which Shakespeare play features fairies called Oberon, Titania and Puck?
A Midsummer Night’s Dream
The Taming of the Shrew
The Merchant of Venice
Much Ado About Nothing
What had been the role of the late Yorick in the play ‘Hamlet’?
Knight
General
Lord Chamberlain
Court Jester
In Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, what was Romeo’s family name?
Capulet
Montalban
Cartier
Montague
Sir John Falstaff is a character who appears in three plays by William Shakespeare. In which of these does he NOT appear?
Henry IV part 2
The Merry Wives of Windsor
Richard III
Henry IV part 1
Sir Toby Belch is a character from which Shakespeare play?
As You Like It
A Midsummer Night’s Dream
Twelfth Night
Much Ado About Nothing
In the play ‘Hamlet’, how is Claudius, King of Denmark, related to Hamlet?
Brother
Uncle
Grandfather
Father
In the play ‘Macbeth’ how is Lady Macbeth related to the central character?
Aunt
Wife
Daughter
Mother
What was the location of the battle in Shakespeare’s play Richard III?
Bosworth Field
Sedgemoor
Soldier Field
Prestonpans
In Shakespeare’s play, Macbeth becomes king of which country?
England
Ireland
Wales
Scotland
Who are the Shakespeare characters Valentine and Proteus?
Friends of Romeo
Sons of Titus Andronicus
Servants of King Lear
The Two Gentlemen of Verona
William Shakespeare was born in 1564 in which town?
Stratford-upon-Avon
Ashton-under-Lyme
Kingston-upon-Thames
Chorlton-cum-Hardy
In the play Richard III, King Richard is depicted as having what physical deformity?
Bad haircut
Club foot
Hunchback
Withered Arm
What position is held by the Shakespeare character Tutus Andronicus?
Merchant
Judge
General
King
Richard III was a member of which Royal House?
Lancaster
Windsor
Saxe-Coburg
York
In the play Hamlet, what is the name of Polonius’s daughter?
Ophelia
Amelia
Aurelia
Juliet
Prospero is the main character in which Shakespeare play?
Twelfth Night
The Tempest
All’s Well That Ends Well
Measure for Measure
In the play Hamlet, the central character refers to the skull of a dead friend by what name?
Rosencrantz
Osric
Yorick
Horatio
How many plays did Shakespeare write?
37
27
47
17
How many suicides are there in Shakespeare plays?
Twenty
Thirteen
Three
Thirty
The Nurse is a major character in which Shakespeare play?
Romeo and Juliet
Love’s Labour’s Lost
Troilus and Cressida
The Merchant of Venice
The skull of a deceased character called Yorick is featured in which Shakespeare play?
Richard III
Macbeth
Henry IV part 1
Hamlet
In the ‘Merchant of Venice’ – who is the ‘merchant’ of the title?
Shylock
Balthazar
Bassonio
Antonio
Though born in Stratford-upon-Avon, Shakespeare spent much of his career as a playwright and actor in which city?
London
Manchester
Birmingham
Liverpool
Who is Propero’s daughter in ‘Twelfth Night’?
Sycorax
Miranda
Ariel
Iris
Which Shakespeare character is the victim of a spell that puts a donkey’s head on his shoulders?
Banquo
Puck
Horatio
Bottom
What were the respective family names of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet?
Macbeth and Macduff
Montague and Capulet
Cassio and Montano
Starveling and Lysander
Which good-natured braggart appears in Shakespeare’s ‘Henry IV’ and ‘The Merry Wives of Windsor’?
Camillo
Leontes
Falstaff
Mamillius
Which Shakespeare character is also referred to as the ‘Thane of Cawdor’?
Richard III
King Lear
Macbeth
Hamlet
Portia is the heroine of which Shakespeare play?
The Merchant of Venice
The Winter’s Tale
The Merry Wives of Windsor
The Comedy of Errors
Now is the winter of our discontent’ is a line from which Shakespeare play?
Richard III
Macbeth
King Lear
Hamlet
In ‘The Taming of the Shrew’ – what is the name of the ‘shrew’?
Kathleena
Katherina
Cressida
Carolina
In Shakespeare’s play ‘Richard III’ during a battle, Richard offers what in exchange for a horse?
His Kingdom
His Palace
His Gold
His Wife
In the play ‘Troilus and Cressida’ Troilus’s father is King of Troy. What is his name?
Priam
Paris
Hector
Achilles
Who played the role of William Shakespeare in the film ‘Shakespeare in Love’?
Aksel Hennie
Joseph Fiennes
John Hurt
Rufus Sewell
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Great!