Inventions and Inventors Quiz – Who Invented the Telephone, Printing Press and More?
A general knowledge quiz about famous inventions and the people behind them, from the printing press to the World Wide Web. 12 questions with answers and explanations, suitable for classes, clubs and family quiz nights.
- All ages
- 12 questions
- About 6 min
Free. It's copied to your account, and you can edit it anytime.
Questions
Correct answers aren't marked here, so you can use this page as a test. You'll see them in your account after you use the quiz.
- 1Single choice
Who built the movable-type printing press in Europe around 1440?
- Leonardo da Vinci
- Johannes Gutenberg
- Isaac Newton
- Galileo Galilei
- 2Single choice
Who is usually credited with patenting the telephone in 1876?
- Thomas Edison
- Nikola Tesla
- Alexander Graham Bell
- Guglielmo Marconi
- 3Single choice
Which brothers made the first controlled, powered airplane flight in 1903?
- The Wright brothers
- The Lumière brothers
- The Grimm brothers
- The Montgolfier brothers
- 4Single choice
Who discovered penicillin, the first widely used antibiotic, in 1928?
- Louis Pasteur
- Marie Curie
- Edward Jenner
- Alexander Fleming
- 5Type answer
Which British scientist invented the World Wide Web in 1989?
Written answer:
- 6Single choice
What did Edward Jenner develop in 1796?
- The X-ray machine
- The first vaccine, against smallpox
- The thermometer
- Anesthesia
- 7True / False
Thomas Edison's company developed a practical, long-lasting electric light bulb around 1879.
- True
- False
- 8Single choice
Which ancient civilization invented paper, around the 2nd century CE?
- The Romans
- The Egyptians
- The Chinese
- The Greeks
- 9Multiple choiceMore than one correct answer
Which of these were invented before the year 1900? Select all that apply.
- The telephone
- The steam locomotive
- The smartphone
- The bicycle
- The television
- 10Single choice
Who discovered the elements polonium and radium?
- Marie and Pierre Curie
- Albert Einstein
- Charles Darwin
- Dmitri Mendeleev
- 11True / False
James Watt invented the very first steam engine.
- True
- False
- 12Single choice
Which instrument did Galileo improve and use in 1610 to discover moons orbiting Jupiter?
- Microscope
- Barometer
- Telescope
- Compass