Famous Quotes Quiz
Speeches, movies and misattributions: 15 famous lines, from Casablanca to the Moon, and who really said them.
The line "May the Force be with you" comes from which film franchise?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Star Wars
The farewell first appears in the original Star Wars film in 1977, spoken by General Dodonna and later by Han Solo to Luke Skywalker, and it has run through every film since.
Fans celebrate Star Wars Day on 4 May each year because of the pun May the Fourth be with you.
Which boxer declared 'Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee'?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Muhammad Ali
Muhammad Ali, then still Cassius Clay, used the line before his 1964 title fight with Sonny Liston; it was coined with his cornerman Drew Bundini Brown.
The full version ends 'his hands can't hit what his eyes can't see', a jab at Liston before Clay won the title in Miami Beach.
In which 1984 film does Arnold Schwarzenegger first say "I'll be back"?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
The Terminator
Schwarzenegger's cyborg says the line to a desk sergeant in The Terminator before driving a car through the police station wall. It became his catchphrase in later films.
Schwarzenegger has said he initially wanted the line changed to I will be back because he struggled to pronounce the contraction.
Who said "That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind" in 1969?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Neil Armstrong
Neil Armstrong spoke the words as he stepped onto the Moon on 20 July 1969 during Apollo 11. Buzz Aldrin followed him onto the surface about 19 minutes later.
Armstrong always maintained he said one small step for a man, and argued the a was simply lost in the radio transmission.
Which US president said "Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country"?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
John F. Kennedy
John F. Kennedy delivered the line in his inaugural address on 20 January 1961, urging Americans to serve the nation at the height of the Cold War.
Kennedy's inaugural address was one of the shortest of the twentieth century, running under 14 minutes and just over 1,300 words.
Which character says "Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn" in Gone with the Wind?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Rhett Butler
Rhett Butler, played by Clark Gable, says the line to Scarlett O'Hara as he walks out at the end of the 1939 film. The American Film Institute ranked it the greatest movie quote of all time.
The producers paid a fine of $5,000 to the Hays Office for keeping the word damn, which was considered profanity under the film code of the time.
Which philosopher wrote "I think, therefore I am"?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
René Descartes
René Descartes made the statement in his 1637 Discourse on the Method, arguing that the very act of doubting proves the doubter exists. In Latin it is cogito, ergo sum.
Descartes also invented the Cartesian coordinate system, the x and y axes used in every maths classroom, which is named after him.
Who told the House of Commons in June 1940, "We shall fight on the beaches"?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Winston Churchill
Winston Churchill gave the speech on 4 June 1940 after the Dunkirk evacuation, promising Britain would fight on alone against Nazi Germany. He had been Prime Minister for less than a month.
Churchill did not broadcast the speech on the day; the famous recording of him reading it was made for posterity in 1949.
The line "Here's looking at you, kid" comes from which classic 1942 film?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Casablanca
Humphrey Bogart's Rick Blaine says the toast to Ingrid Bergman's Ilsa several times in Casablanca, most memorably in the airport farewell at the end of the film.
Bogart was reportedly not in the original script with that line; it was a phrase he used while teaching Bergman poker between takes.
Which US president said "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!" in Berlin in 1987?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan made the demand in a speech at the Brandenburg Gate on 12 June 1987, challenging the Soviet leader to open the Berlin Wall. The wall fell just over two years later.
Several of Reagan's advisers urged him to cut the line as too provocative, but he insisted on keeping it.
The line 'Keep your friends close, but your enemies closer' comes from which film?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
The Godfather Part II
Michael Corleone says the line in The Godfather Part II (1974), explaining a lesson he says his father taught him.
The line is often credited to Sun Tzu or Machiavelli, but no such wording appears in their writings; the film made it famous.
"Houston, we have a problem" is a slightly altered version of a real radio call from which space mission?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Apollo 13
After an oxygen tank exploded in April 1970, astronaut Jack Swigert radioed Houston, we've had a problem here, and Jim Lovell repeated it. The 1995 film changed the tense.
All three Apollo 13 astronauts survived by using the lunar module as a lifeboat and splashed down safely in the Pacific on 17 April 1970.
Which ancient Chinese text contains the line "A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step"?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Tao Te Ching
The saying comes from chapter 64 of the Tao Te Ching, the Taoist classic traditionally attributed to Laozi. A closer translation is that a journey of a thousand li begins beneath one's feet.
The Analects record the teachings of Confucius, while The Art of War is the military treatise attributed to Sun Tzu.
"Let them eat cake" is blamed on Marie Antoinette, but the line was actually written by which philosopher while she was still a child?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Rousseau
The phrase appears in book six of Rousseau's Confessions, written around 1765, attributed only to a great princess. Marie Antoinette was about nine years old at the time and had never been to France.
There is no evidence that Marie Antoinette ever said the line, which was only linked to her decades after her execution in 1793.
Which writer responded to a premature obituary in 1897 by saying "The report of my death was an exaggeration"?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Mark Twain
Mark Twain gave the response in 1897 after a newspaper confused him with an ill cousin in London. The popular version, reports of my death are greatly exaggerated, is a later embellishment.
Twain was born in 1835 as Halley's Comet appeared and predicted he would go out with it; he died in April 1910, the day after the comet's return.
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All General Knowledge quizzes →About the Famous Quotes Quiz
Some lines outlive the people who said them. A 1961 inaugural address, a radio call from a crippled spacecraft and a four-word promise from a time-travelling cyborg have all become part of everyday speech. The catch is that memory plays tricks, and several of the most quoted lines in history were never said by the person who gets the credit.
These 15 questions ask who said it, which film or play it comes from and, for the final stretch, which attributions are flat wrong. You will meet Churchill, Descartes and Laozi, plus a cake that Marie Antoinette never mentioned. Good for film fans, history buffs and anyone who likes to correct people at parties.
You will find 15 multiple choice questions here, each with four options. Difficulty: Medium. Most people finish in about 6 minutes, and every answer comes with a short explanation and one extra fact worth keeping.
How to play
Read the question and pick one of the four answers. The correct answer is revealed straight away with a short explanation, then press Next question to keep going. At the end you get your score out of 15 and a full review of your round. Play again any time and the questions arrive in a fresh order. There is no timer and no account.
Good to know before you play
Are these quotes verified?
Yes. Every attribution was checked against reliable sources, and the quiz deliberately includes two famous lines that are commonly credited to the wrong person.
What kinds of quotes are in the quiz?
Movie lines, political speeches, philosophy and literature, from Star Wars and Casablanca to Kennedy, Churchill and the Tao Te Ching.
Is the Famous Quotes Quiz hard?
It is rated Medium. Most film and speech questions are familiar, but the final questions about misattributed quotes catch out a lot of players.
Answer key: all 15 questions with explanations
- The line "May the Force be with you" comes from which film franchise?
Star Wars The farewell first appears in the original Star Wars film in 1977, spoken by General Dodonna and later by Han Solo to Luke Skywalker, and it has run through every film since. Fans celebrate Star Wars Day on 4 May each year because of the pun May the Fourth be with you. - Which boxer declared 'Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee'?
Muhammad Ali Muhammad Ali, then still Cassius Clay, used the line before his 1964 title fight with Sonny Liston; it was coined with his cornerman Drew Bundini Brown. The full version ends 'his hands can't hit what his eyes can't see', a jab at Liston before Clay won the title in Miami Beach. - In which 1984 film does Arnold Schwarzenegger first say "I'll be back"?
The Terminator Schwarzenegger's cyborg says the line to a desk sergeant in The Terminator before driving a car through the police station wall. It became his catchphrase in later films. Schwarzenegger has said he initially wanted the line changed to I will be back because he struggled to pronounce the contraction. - Who said "That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind" in 1969?
Neil Armstrong Neil Armstrong spoke the words as he stepped onto the Moon on 20 July 1969 during Apollo 11. Buzz Aldrin followed him onto the surface about 19 minutes later. Armstrong always maintained he said one small step for a man, and argued the a was simply lost in the radio transmission. - Which US president said "Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country"?
John F. Kennedy John F. Kennedy delivered the line in his inaugural address on 20 January 1961, urging Americans to serve the nation at the height of the Cold War. Kennedy's inaugural address was one of the shortest of the twentieth century, running under 14 minutes and just over 1,300 words. - Which character says "Frankly, my dear, I don't give a damn" in Gone with the Wind?
Rhett Butler Rhett Butler, played by Clark Gable, says the line to Scarlett O'Hara as he walks out at the end of the 1939 film. The American Film Institute ranked it the greatest movie quote of all time. The producers paid a fine of $5,000 to the Hays Office for keeping the word damn, which was considered profanity under the film code of the time. - Which philosopher wrote "I think, therefore I am"?
René Descartes René Descartes made the statement in his 1637 Discourse on the Method, arguing that the very act of doubting proves the doubter exists. In Latin it is cogito, ergo sum. Descartes also invented the Cartesian coordinate system, the x and y axes used in every maths classroom, which is named after him. - Who told the House of Commons in June 1940, "We shall fight on the beaches"?
Winston Churchill Winston Churchill gave the speech on 4 June 1940 after the Dunkirk evacuation, promising Britain would fight on alone against Nazi Germany. He had been Prime Minister for less than a month. Churchill did not broadcast the speech on the day; the famous recording of him reading it was made for posterity in 1949. - The line "Here's looking at you, kid" comes from which classic 1942 film?
Casablanca Humphrey Bogart's Rick Blaine says the toast to Ingrid Bergman's Ilsa several times in Casablanca, most memorably in the airport farewell at the end of the film. Bogart was reportedly not in the original script with that line; it was a phrase he used while teaching Bergman poker between takes. - Which US president said "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!" in Berlin in 1987?
Ronald Reagan Ronald Reagan made the demand in a speech at the Brandenburg Gate on 12 June 1987, challenging the Soviet leader to open the Berlin Wall. The wall fell just over two years later. Several of Reagan's advisers urged him to cut the line as too provocative, but he insisted on keeping it. - The line 'Keep your friends close, but your enemies closer' comes from which film?
The Godfather Part II Michael Corleone says the line in The Godfather Part II (1974), explaining a lesson he says his father taught him. The line is often credited to Sun Tzu or Machiavelli, but no such wording appears in their writings; the film made it famous. - "Houston, we have a problem" is a slightly altered version of a real radio call from which space mission?
Apollo 13 After an oxygen tank exploded in April 1970, astronaut Jack Swigert radioed Houston, we've had a problem here, and Jim Lovell repeated it. The 1995 film changed the tense. All three Apollo 13 astronauts survived by using the lunar module as a lifeboat and splashed down safely in the Pacific on 17 April 1970. - Which ancient Chinese text contains the line "A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step"?
Tao Te Ching The saying comes from chapter 64 of the Tao Te Ching, the Taoist classic traditionally attributed to Laozi. A closer translation is that a journey of a thousand li begins beneath one's feet. The Analects record the teachings of Confucius, while The Art of War is the military treatise attributed to Sun Tzu. - "Let them eat cake" is blamed on Marie Antoinette, but the line was actually written by which philosopher while she was still a child?
Rousseau The phrase appears in book six of Rousseau's Confessions, written around 1765, attributed only to a great princess. Marie Antoinette was about nine years old at the time and had never been to France. There is no evidence that Marie Antoinette ever said the line, which was only linked to her decades after her execution in 1793. - Which writer responded to a premature obituary in 1897 by saying "The report of my death was an exaggeration"?
Mark Twain Mark Twain gave the response in 1897 after a newspaper confused him with an ill cousin in London. The popular version, reports of my death are greatly exaggerated, is a later embellishment. Twain was born in 1835 as Halley's Comet appeared and predicted he would go out with it; he died in April 1910, the day after the comet's return.
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