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Thanksgiving trivia printable

Why do cranberries float? Where do wild turkeys sleep? Try 12 questions about Thanksgiving and the season around it. Give each team one sheet and keep the clues and answers with the host.

US Letter PDFs

Download player sheet · US LetterDownload host key · US Letter

A4 PDFs

Download player sheet · A4Download host key · A4

Each download is one page. No account or email needed.

How to play at the table

Print one player sheet per person or team and one host key for the table. For a read-aloud round, keep a spare player sheet or open the questions below alongside the key. If you’re keeping score, offer the same clue to every team.

Give one point for each correct answer. The key includes accepted wording where it matters. If you only have time for a few questions, stop after any round and check those answers together.

Actual player sheet with twelve questions in three rounds and a blank writing line below each question.
US Letter player sheet. The A4 version has the same questions.
Read the questions on this page

Around the table

  1. In the U.S. federal calendar, which Thursday of November is Thanksgiving?
  2. What is the name of a male wild turkey’s loud call during spring courtship?
  3. Which long-necked bird inspired the name of the cranberry?
  4. What do bees carry between male and female flowers on a squash vine?

Out the window

  1. Where do wild turkeys often sleep: up in trees or on the ground?
  2. You find a nut in a tiny cap. What kind of tree makes acorns?
  3. What pigment gives green leaves their color before the fall change?
  4. Which is usually shorter in the Northern Hemisphere: daylight in late November or late June?

A little trickier

  1. Why do fresh cranberries float to the surface when growers flood a bog?
  2. What do you call the thin strands that trail out the end of an ear of corn?
  3. What year did Macy’s hold the first parade now known as its Thanksgiving Day Parade?
  4. What is the nickname for the full moon closest to the September equinox?

Keep the clues with the host

The key pairs each answer with a clue and a short explanation. The source links take you to the references for each answer, including Cornell’s bird guide and NASA’s notes on the seasons.

Preview the host key (shows answers)Actual US Letter host sheet with answers, clues, explanations and a source for each question.
Read the clues, answers and sources

Around the table

  1. Fourth Thursday (fourth is enough). It is observed on the fourth Thursday of November.
    Clue: It comes after the third one.
    U.S. Office of Personnel Management
  2. A gobble. Courting males strut, spread their tail feathers and gobble.
    Clue: The name starts with a hard G.
    Cornell Lab of Ornithology
  3. A crane (including sandhill crane). The curve and shape suggest the bird’s neck, head and bill.
    Clue: Its name also means a machine that lifts heavy loads.
    University of Wisconsin–Madison Extension
  4. Pollen. Bees carry it from male to female flowers during visits.
    Clue: It can look like dust on a bee.
    University of Minnesota Extension

Out the window

  1. Up in trees. Wild turkeys fly into trees to roost together.
    Clue: Adults can fly short distances.
    Cornell Lab of Ornithology
  2. Oak (any named oak is fine). An acorn is the nut of an oak tree.
    Clue: The name starts with O.
    USDA Forest Service
  3. Chlorophyll. As green fades, other pigments can show through.
    Clue: Its name begins with chl-.
    National Park Service
  4. Late November. The north gets longer days around the June solstice and shorter days as December approaches.
    Clue: Think of the season when the north tilts away from the Sun.
    NASA Earth Observatory

A little trickier

  1. Air pockets (or air inside the berries). Air pockets help the berries float once they come off the vines.
    Clue: Think of what keeps an inflatable ball afloat.
    University of Wisconsin–Madison Extension
  2. Corn silk (or silk). Each kernel has a strand of silk.
    Clue: The name is also a fabric.
    Purdue Extension
  3. 1924. The company’s own timeline dates its first parade to 1924.
    Clue: The year was in the 1920s.
    Macy’s history
  4. Harvest Moon. It is the full moon nearest the autumn equinox.
    Clue: Think of gathering crops from the fields.
    NASA Science

Print a copy for each team

Pick the PDF that matches your paper and print in portrait at Actual size. Players write their answers by hand. You can keep the key open on your phone if you only want to print player sheets.

For a second activity with the same pencils, print the Thanksgiving word scramble.

Save the quiz for Thanksgiving

The title Thanksgiving Trivia above three illustrated cranberries floating in blue water.
Why do cranberries float? That’s one of the questions in the quiz. You may share this image. Please link back here so others can print the game.
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