World Customs & Etiquette Quiz – Printable Version
20 multiple-choice questions with an explained answer key, ready to print.
Print the sheet (or save it as a PDF from the print window), hand it out, then mark it together using the answer page: every answer is explained. Perfect for a party, a birthday, a classroom, a care home or a team activity.
Name: ………………………………Score: ……… / 20
- In Japan, is it rude to slurp your noodles (ramen, soba) noisily?
- A. Yes, it's a serious breach of manners
- B. Only in front of an elder
- C. Only in the evening
- D. No, it's common and shows you are enjoying the dish
- Why should you never stand your chopsticks upright in a bowl of rice, in Japan as in China?
- A. It recalls offerings made to the dead at funerals
- B. It means you want more rice
- C. It's a threatening gesture
- D. It brings bad luck to cooks
- In Japan, how should you receive the business card (meishi) handed to you?
- A. With one hand, slipping it straight into your back pocket
- B. Folding it in half out of respect
- C. Writing on it immediately
- D. With both hands, taking time to read it before putting it away carefully
- After a trip, what is a Japanese employee often expected to bring back for colleagues?
- A. A photo of each place visited
- B. A written report on the holiday
- C. Nothing, talking about holidays is frowned upon
- D. "Omiyage": small, often sweet local specialities, individually wrapped
- Which behaviour, ordinary in many Western countries, is traditionally frowned upon in the street in Japan?
- A. Eating while walking
- B. Greeting a neighbour
- C. Wearing a hat
- D. Walking fast
- In southern China, when someone refills your tea, which small gesture says thank you without interrupting the conversation?
- A. Raising the cup above your head
- B. Blowing on the tea
- C. Tapping the table gently with two bent fingers
- D. Turning the cup upside down
- At Chinese New Year, what is traditionally given to children and unmarried young people?
- A. New shoes
- B. Red envelopes containing money
- C. Paper lanterns
- D. Peeled oranges
- In Russia, according to a still-common superstition, what should you avoid on the doorstep?
- A. Blowing your nose
- B. Taking off your hat
- C. Saying hello
- D. Shaking hands or kissing across the threshold
- In India and much of the Middle East, which hand should you eat with or use to hand something over?
- A. The right hand
- B. The left hand
- C. Both hands, always
- D. It doesn't matter
- How do people traditionally greet each other in India, without touching?
- A. By rubbing noses
- B. By slapping each other's backs
- C. Palms pressed together at the chest, saying "Namaste"
- D. By bowing to the ground
- In Tibet, which gesture, rude almost everywhere else, is traditionally a respectful greeting?
- A. Spitting on the ground
- B. Turning your back
- C. Sticking out your tongue
- D. Snapping your fingers
- What does the "Law of Jante", an unwritten code of conduct often linked to Scandinavian countries, sum up?
- A. You should not think you are better than others
- B. You should always arrive early
- C. You should never refuse an invitation
- D. You should speak loudly to be heard
- In the UK, which behaviour is considered one of the rudest things you can do in everyday life?
- A. Talking about the weather
- B. Apologising too often
- C. Jumping the queue
- D. Drinking tea with milk
- In the UK, what does the "V for victory" become if you make it with your palm facing you?
- A. A peace sign
- B. A rude gesture, roughly equal to giving the finger
- C. An order for two beers
- D. A military salute
- In Spain, what time do people usually have dinner?
- A. Around 6 pm
- B. Around 9 or 10 pm
- C. Around 7 pm
- D. At midnight sharp
- In Spain, what do people do in time with the twelve strokes of midnight on 31 December?
- A. Jump twelve times
- B. Kiss twelve people
- C. Light twelve candles
- D. Eat one grape on each stroke
- At table, where does French etiquette say you should keep your hands during a meal?
- A. On your lap, under the table
- B. Crossed behind your back
- C. Resting on the table, wrists visible
- D. In your pockets
- In the United States, what tip is usually left at a restaurant for normal service?
- A. Nothing at all
- B. A token coin
- C. Exactly $1 per person
- D. About 15 to 20% of the bill, or more
- What is the name of the traditional Māori greeting in New Zealand, in which two people gently press their noses and foreheads together?
- A. The hongi
- B. The haka
- C. The wahine
- D. The kiwi
- In Ethiopia, what happens during a "gursha"?
- A. People fast for a day
- B. People dance around the table
- C. Someone places a mouthful of food directly into a fellow diner's mouth, as a sign of affection
- D. The guest's feet are washed
Answer key — World Customs & Etiquette Quiz
- D. No, it's common and shows you are enjoying the dishSlurping cools the noodles and brings out their aromas. The noise, awkward for many Westerners, is perfectly acceptable in Japan, and even a sign that you are enjoying your meal.
- A. It recalls offerings made to the dead at funeralsChopsticks standing in rice recall incense sticks and the bowl of rice offered to the deceased.
- D. With both hands, taking time to read it before putting it away carefullyThe card represents the person. You receive it with both hands, look at it, keep it in front of you during the meeting, then put it in a card holder.
- D. "Omiyage": small, often sweet local specialities, individually wrappedOmiyage, often cakes or sweets typical of the region visited, are shared at the office to thank those who covered your work while you were away.
- A. Eating while walkingPeople tend to eat sitting down or standing near where they bought their snack.
- C. Tapping the table gently with two bent fingersAccording to legend, an emperor travelling incognito served tea to his companions; unable to bow without giving him away, they tapped the table with two bent fingers, like a miniature bow.
- B. Red envelopes containing moneyRed brings luck and wards off evil spirits. Hongbao contain crisp new notes, and amounts linked to the number 4 are avoided.
- D. Shaking hands or kissing across the thresholdThe threshold was seen as a boundary between two worlds, the home and the outside.
- A. The right handThe left hand is traditionally reserved for personal hygiene: using it to eat, hand over money or shake hands is considered rude.
- C. Palms pressed together at the chest, saying "Namaste"Namaste roughly means "I bow to you". This respectful greeting, with a slight nod, enjoyed a worldwide revival during the Covid-19 pandemic, when people avoided shaking hands.
- C. Sticking out your tongueAccording to a popular explanation, a cruel 9th-century king had a black tongue: by showing a nice pink one, you proved you were not his reincarnation.
- A. You should not think you are better than othersSet out in 1933 by the Danish-Norwegian writer Aksel Sandemose in a satirical novel, it lists rules such as "you shall not think you are better than us".
- C. Jumping the queueQueuing is almost a national art: jumping the queue triggers hard stares, sighs and sometimes an icily polite remark.
- B. A rude gesture, roughly equal to giving the fingerPalm outwards, it's Churchill's V; palm inwards, it's an insult well known to Britons.
- B. Around 9 or 10 pmSpaniards often have lunch around 2 pm and dinner late, a habit sometimes explained by the time zone: Spain runs on Central European time although it is geographically aligned with the UK.
- D. Eat one grape on each strokeThe "twelve grapes of luck" promise a lucky month for each grape swallowed in time.
- C. Resting on the table, wrists visibleIn France, keeping your hands visible is the rule; elbows, however, stay off the table.
- D. About 15 to 20% of the bill, or moreAmerican waiting staff often have a very low base wage: tips make up most of their income.
- A. The hongiThe hongi symbolises sharing the breath of life: for the duration of the meeting, the visitor becomes one of the people of the land.
- C. Someone places a mouthful of food directly into a fellow diner's mouth, as a sign of affectionAround injera, the large shared flatbread, offering a gursha shows friendship and respect.