U.S. State Flowers
The hibiscus is often seen in women’s hair when they greet hotel visitors in this state.
What is Hawaii? In 1988, the legislature narrowed the state flower to specifically the yellow hibiscus.
By the time children are three years old, they have 20 of these—before they lose them.
What are teeth? The full complement of adult teeth has 32.
This is the person who lives next door or across the street.
What is neighbor? More than half of Americans do not know the people around them.
Fred Astaire and…
Who is Ginger Rogers? Two rumors persist and are false. No, they were not lovers, though they kissed once. And no, they did not hate each other.
It’s finger-lickin’ good.
What is KFC, or Kentucky Fried Chicken? The secret recipe is under lock and key in Kentucky.
Money burns a hole in this.
What is your pocket? It means you’re eager to spend money rather than save it.
The Mayflower was the obvious choice for this state’s official flower, due to its name’s historical significance.
What is Massachusetts? The Mayflower ship landed at Plymouth Rock, which is in modern-day Massachusetts.
You have two funny bones, which are not bones at all, but are these.
What are nerves? Each nerve runs from the neck down to the pinky finger.
It’s greater to give than to do this.
What is receive? This concept applies to more than gifts. For some people, the greatest gift is a gift of your time.
Batman and…
Who is Robin? Adam West plays Batman and Burt Ward plays Robin in the original 1960s TV series.
The best part of waking up is [this] in your cup.
What is Folgers? Folgers was established in the 1850s, and the family is related to Ben Franklin.
Powerball is this type of game.
What is lottery? While chances of winning the lottery are slim, Kenneth J. Stokes of Norwood, Massachusetts, won twice in one day in the same lottery. He forgot his family had bought him a season ticket with pre-selected numbers, and he played the same number on a ticket he purchased. He won two $25,000 checks.
Arizona’s state flower sits atop this prickly succulent.
What is cactus? The specific cactus is the saguaro (suh-WAA-row), a slow-growing, colossal plant.
The typical cell in the human body has 23 pairs—46 total—of these.
What are chromosomes? Before a cell divides, it creates a copy of its chromosomes so that each new cell has a full set.
This is the legal age to vote in the United States.
What is eighteen? The change from 21 to 18 as the legal voting age took place via the 26th amendment to the U.S. Constitution in 1971.
Laurel and…
Who is Hardy? Their signature hats are bowler hats, and their signature tunes are “The Dance of the Cuckoos,” “Ku-Ku,” and “The Cuckoo Song.”
L’eggo my Eggo!
What are Eggo waffles? They were initially known as Froffles, shortened from frozen waffles.
Money you earn off a CD, or certificate of deposit, is called this.
What is interest? CDs are similar to savings accounts. You commit to leaving money in the account for a set period. In return, you earn higher interest than you would make on a savings account. CDs are federally insured.
This state goes by the moniker the Volunteer State, and the state flower is the iris.
What is Tennessee? It also has a second state flower, the Tennessee coneflower, or echinacea. The passionflower was the first state flower, but the legislature codified the iris as the state flower and the passionflower as the state wildflower.
Babies are born with 270, but adults have between 206 and 213 of these.
What are bones? Babies’ bones are soft, and some fuse together as the baby grows, which is why adults have fewer.
This is someone from another country.
What is foreigner? Almost 80 million foreigners visit the United States each year.
Abbott and…
Who is Costello? Abbott dropped out of school in the fourth grade. He got a lucky break when Costello’s straight man failed to appear. Abbott was an emergency replacement, and the duo was born.
Have it your way.
What is Burger King? Its signature burger is the Whopper.
“Too big to fail” refers to these institutions.
What are (large) banks? Among the “too big to fails” are Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan Chase, and Bank of America.
This state derives its name from the Aleutian word for “mainland,” and its state flower is the forget-me-not.
What is Alaska? Its state nickname is the Last Frontier, and its state motto is “North to the future.”
The M in mRNA stands for this, and it’s used in a vital three-step process.
What is messenger? The three-step process makes proteins, and the mRNA carries the instructions to complete the process.
This communications device has outgoing and incoming communication capacity.
What is transceiver? An example of a transceiver is the HAM radio.
George Putnam and this aviator…
Who is Amelia Earhart? They fell in love while he was still married. She left out the part about obeying her husband in her marriage vows.
Small fry loves [this].
What is Bird’s Eye? The company was a trailblazer in frozen foods in the 1950s.
The two-dollar coin in Canada goes by this nickname.
What is toonie? The Canadian one-dollar coin is called the loonie.
The sagebrush is this state’s flower and is depicted on the state’s flag.
What is Nevada? The flowers bloom in late summer and early fall on the shrub.
Human cells make more than 100,000 different types of these.
What are proteins? Each type of protein has its own unique messenger RNA sequence.
This means to give up or to lose by default.
What is forfeit? Lawsuits are sometimes forfeited because one party fails to answer a motion.
In Homer’s Odyssey, Odysseus and...
Who is Penelope? Their names came to stand for faithfulness in marriage, as Penelope fought off suitors for 20 years while Odysseus was away fighting the Trojan War.
How many licks does it take…?
What is Tootsie Roll? There were several variations of the 1960s tagline, but they all wanted the customer to guess how many licks led to the center of the Tootsie Roll. The answer is no one knows.
This has replaced paper in Canadian and British banknotes.
What is polymer? It lasts longer and allows more security features than paper, making the notes harder to counterfeit.
She played Anita in the first Broadway production of West Side Story.
Who is Chita Rivera? She is a two-time Tony winner. Rita Moreno plays Anita in the film version.