Seven days of questions and answers

Valentine's Day Trivia Answers Archive

Review earlier daily rounds, reveal the correct answer, and use the short explanation to learn the fact behind each question. Page 3 of 12 covers seven completed UTC days.

Play today's quiz

Daily round

  1. In Finland, Valentine's Day is commonly known as a day celebrating what relationship?

    Answer: Friendship

    Finland's ystävänpäivä is commonly understood as Friend's Day and emphasizes friendship.

  2. Which flower is known botanically as Dianthus caryophyllus?

    Answer: Carnation

    Dianthus caryophyllus is the cultivated carnation often used in bouquets.

  3. Which term describes a poem of fourteen lines?

    Answer: Sonnet

    A sonnet is a poetic form traditionally built from fourteen lines.

  4. What decorative paper material was common on Victorian valentines?

    Answer: Lace paper

    Victorian card makers often used embossed lace paper to frame romantic designs.

  5. Which type of chocolate contains cocoa butter but no cocoa solids?

    Answer: White chocolate

    White chocolate uses cocoa butter without the nonfat cocoa solids found in brown chocolate.

Daily round

  1. Which organ is represented by the familiar heart symbol?

    Answer: Heart

    The stylized heart symbol represents the anatomical organ associated culturally with love.

  2. Which country celebrates Dia dos Namorados on June 12?

    Answer: Brazil

    Brazil observes Dia dos Namorados, a celebration for romantic partners, on June 12.

  3. In art, Cupid is the Roman counterpart of which Greek god?

    Answer: Eros

    Cupid corresponds to Eros, the Greek deity of love and desire.

  4. Which color is most commonly associated with romantic love on Valentine's Day?

    Answer: Red

    Red is the dominant Valentine's color because of longstanding links with passion and the heart.

  5. Which Swiss chocolatier developed milk chocolate with Henri Nestlé's condensed milk?

    Answer: Daniel Peter

    Daniel Peter used condensed milk developed by Henri Nestlé to create successful milk chocolate.

Daily round

  1. Which rhyme scheme is standard for a Shakespearean sonnet?

    Answer: ABAB CDCD EFEF GG

    A Shakespearean sonnet normally uses three alternating-rhyme quatrains followed by a rhyming couplet.

  2. Which flower's name comes from the Greek word for rainbow?

    Answer: Iris

    Iris is named for the Greek rainbow goddess, reflecting the flower's many colors.

  3. Who is often called the “Mother of the American Valentine” for popularizing mass-produced cards?

    Answer: Esther Howland

    Esther Howland built a successful nineteenth-century business producing elaborate valentines in Massachusetts.

  4. Chocolate is made from seeds of which tree?

    Answer: Cacao

    Chocolate begins with fermented and roasted seeds of the cacao tree.

  5. Which neurotransmitter is central to reward and motivation pathways?

    Answer: Dopamine

    Dopamine signaling helps the brain encode reward, motivation, and reinforcement.

Daily round

  1. Which artist painted the paired self-portraits in “The Two Fridas”?

    Answer: Frida Kahlo

    Frida Kahlo painted two connected versions of herself in The Two Fridas.

  2. Which family includes roses, apples, and strawberries?

    Answer: Rosaceae

    Roses, apples, and strawberries are all members of the Rosaceae plant family.

  3. What is the final two-line unit of a Shakespearean sonnet called?

    Answer: Couplet

    A rhyming couplet closes the standard Shakespearean sonnet.

  4. Which Greek word names affectionate love between friends?

    Answer: Philia

    Philia refers to friendship, fondness, and bonds between companions.

  5. Which marine mammal often holds paws with a partner while floating?

    Answer: Sea otter

    Sea otters may hold paws while resting in rafts, which helps them remain together.

Daily round

  1. What ingredient distinguishes milk chocolate from plain dark chocolate?

    Answer: Milk solids

    Milk chocolate includes milk powder or other milk solids in addition to cocoa and sugar.

  2. What does the Spanish phrase “te quiero” commonly express?

    Answer: Affection or love

    Te quiero is a common Spanish way to tell someone that you love or care for them.

  3. Ganache is traditionally made by combining chocolate with what?

    Answer: Cream

    Ganache forms when chopped chocolate melts into warmed cream.

  4. On which date is Valentine's Day observed each year?

    Answer: February 14

    Valentine's Day falls annually on February 14.

  5. Which branch of psychology studies how people think about and relate to one another?

    Answer: Social psychology

    Social psychology examines thoughts, feelings, and behaviors in social contexts.

Daily round

  1. Which process develops chocolate flavor by allowing cacao pulp and beans to react with microbes?

    Answer: Fermentation

    Fermentation changes cacao beans chemically and creates precursors of chocolate flavor.

  2. Which mythical sculptor falls in love with a statue he created?

    Answer: Pygmalion

    In classical myth, Pygmalion loves an ivory statue that is brought to life.

  3. Where was Charles, Duke of Orléans, imprisoned when he wrote an early valentine poem?

    Answer: Tower of London

    Charles wrote the poem while held in the Tower of London after capture at Agincourt.

  4. Which marine mammal often holds paws with a partner while floating?

    Answer: Sea otter

    Sea otters may hold paws while resting in rafts, which helps them remain together.

  5. Who is often called the “Mother of the American Valentine” for popularizing mass-produced cards?

    Answer: Esther Howland

    Esther Howland built a successful nineteenth-century business producing elaborate valentines in Massachusetts.

Daily round

  1. What is the scientific name of the cacao tree?

    Answer: Theobroma cacao

    Theobroma cacao is the botanical name of the tropical tree that produces cacao beans.

  2. In Finland, Valentine's Day is commonly known as a day celebrating what relationship?

    Answer: Friendship

    Finland's ystävänpäivä is commonly understood as Friend's Day and emphasizes friendship.

  3. What decorative paper material was common on Victorian valentines?

    Answer: Lace paper

    Victorian card makers often used embossed lace paper to frame romantic designs.

  4. Which mineral ion helps heart muscle cells contract?

    Answer: Calcium

    Calcium ions play an essential role in triggering cardiac muscle contraction.

  5. Which weapon is Cupid usually shown carrying?

    Answer: Bow and arrows

    Cupid's arrows symbolically cause those they strike to fall in love.