WW1 Quiz “Over the Top” Terms

Question 1

A signal, given by siren, to announce that it is now safe to remove one’s gas mask after a gas attack

Answer 1

All Safe

Question 2

Weapon used to fire very large projectiles. Howitzers, guns, and mortars are types of artillery. Popularly known as cannons

Answer 2

Artillery

Question 3

Steel blade, shaped like a short sword, that is fixed at the end of a rifle and used for hand-to-hand combat

Answer 3

Bayonet

Question 4

A place that is designated for soldiers to receive food and shelter

Answer 4

Billet

Question 5

From the French word boulli, meaning boiled. Meat that is pickled or canned, usually corned beef

Answer 5

Bully Beef

Question 6

Type of wire used for establishing telephone connections between posts

Answer 6

Communication wire

Question 7

A unit of soldiers, normally consisting of 100 men

Answer 7

Company

Question 8

A badge of honour, a medal awarded for bravery

Answer 8

Decoration

Question 9

Floor sections made of wooden slats which can be laid on wet, muddy, or cold surfaces

Answer 9

Duck-boards

Question 10

Shelter dug on the side of the trench, in the ground, used as living quarters, for storage of supplies, or for protection

Answer 10

Dugout

Question 11

Narrow ledge, located inside a trench, that allows soldiers to see over the parapet

Answer 11

Firesteps

Question 12

Nickname used by Allied soldiers to describe Germans

Answer 12

Fritz

Question 13

Cloth and/or rubber mask connected to an air filter and used to protect the face and lungs from poison gas

Answer 13

Gas mask

Question 14

Permission given to soldiers to go home for an extended period of time

Answer 14

Home leave

Question 15

Short form for “Headquarters”; a place from which military commanders perform their duties

Answer 15

HQ

Question 16

Nickname used by Allied soldiers to describe Germans

Answer 16

Jerry

Question 17

German word meaning “emperor.” During the First World War, the Kaiser of Germany was Wilhelm II

Answer 17

Kaiser

Question 18

As in “crater’s lip”; the edge of a large hole

Answer 18

Lip

Question 19

To waste time

Answer 19

Lollygagging

Question 20

A type of cannon used to fire projectiles at high angles

Answer 20

Mortar

Question 21

The narrow, muddy, treeless stretch of land, characterized by numerous shell holes, that separated German and Allied trenches during the First World War. Being in No Man’s Land was considered very dangerous because it offered little to no protection for soldiers

Answer 21

No Man’s Land

Question 22

The inner wall of a trench, made of earth and wood and topped with sandbags, to protect soldiers

Answer 22

Parapet

Question 23

Metal pin that is removed to activate a grenade

Answer 23

Pin

Question 24

A unit of soldiers, normally consisting of 50 men

Answer 24

Platoon

Question 25

Type of gas which gives off a poisonous vapour, designed to kill, injure, or disable a soldier by inhalation or contact

Answer 25

Poison gas

Question 26

Cloth strip made of wool and wrapped around the leg, from ankle to knee, to prevent trousers from being torn or soiled

Answer 26

Puttees

Question 27

A tunnel within a trench, dug to a point beneath the enemy's trenches

Answer 27

Sap

Question 28

A portion or division of a large military area

Answer 28

Sector

Question 29

An artillery projectile containing an explosive bursting charge

Answer 29

Shell

Question 30

A soldier, armed with a rifle and usually well hidden, who shoots at exposed individuals of an enemy's forces

Answer 30

Sniper

Question 31

Permission given to soldiers to leave their defensive positions when an attack by the enemy is deemed unlikely

Answer 31

“Stand down”

Question 32

German hand grenade; small, metal container, attached to a stick, which explodes after it is thrown

Answer 32

Stick grenade

Question 33

Nickname used by German soldiers to describe British (and Canadian) soldiers

Answer 33

Tommy

Question 34

A long, deep, and narrow hole in the ground, with the earth thrown up in front, dug to protect soldiers from bullets and other projectiles

Answer 34

Trench

Question 35

A type of military back-pack, made of sturdy canvas and containing numerous pouches for carrying the ammunition, water bottle, bayonet, food, clothing, and personal belongings of a soldier

Answer 35

Webbing

Question 36

The area of military operations during the First World War which ran from Belgium l, through northern France, and to the Swiss border

Answer 36

Western Front

Question 37

A specific task assigned to an individual or group, usually entailing physical labour

Answer 37

Work detail