World Languages

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How well do you know the languages of the world?

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What is the most spoken language in the world by total number of speakers?

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About World Languages

How well do you know the languages of the world? World Languages packs 15 multiple-choice questions with a mix of 5 easy, 5 hard, 5 medium questions into a relaxed session of roughly 7 minutes — no sign-up, no timer pressure. An explanation appears after every answer, and finishing once a day keeps your streak alive.

A few sample questions

  1. 1. What is the most spoken language in the world by total number of speakers?

    Answer: English

    English is the most spoken language in the world by total speakers (native + non-native), with approximately 1.5 billion speakers. Mandarin Chinese has the most native speakers.

  2. 2. Which language uses the Cyrillic alphabet?

    Answer: Russian

    Russian uses the Cyrillic alphabet, which was developed in the 9th century and is named after Saint Cyril, a Byzantine missionary. Other languages using Cyrillic include Bulgarian, Serbian, and Ukrainian.

  3. 3. What is the official language of Brazil?

    Answer: Portuguese

    Portuguese is the official language of Brazil due to its colonization by Portugal. Brazil is the largest Portuguese-speaking country in the world, with over 210 million speakers.

  4. 4. Which of these languages is written from right to left?

    Answer: Arabic

    Arabic is written and read from right to left. Other right-to-left languages include Hebrew, Persian (Farsi), and Urdu.

  5. 5. How many official languages does the United Nations have?

    Answer: 6

    The United Nations has six official languages: Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian, and Spanish. These were chosen to represent the world's major linguistic groups.

Things you'll learn along the way

  • Zimbabwe has 16 official languages, including Shona, Ndebele, English, and 13 others recognized in its 2013 constitution. South Africa has 12 and Bolivia has 37 recognized languages but fewer official ones.
  • Finnish belongs to the Uralic language family, along with Hungarian and Estonian. Despite being in Northern Europe, Finnish is not related to its Scandinavian neighbors' languages.
  • Latin, the language of the Roman Empire, evolved into the Romance languages including French, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, and Romanian.

Frequently asked questions

Can I print World Languages?

Yes — use the Print button at the top of the page for a clean question sheet, or "Print with Answers" to make an answer key. Printed sheets work well for group play at home, in a classroom, or at a senior center.

Will I lose my progress if I close the page?

Your overall progress — XP, streaks, and badges — is saved in your browser automatically. A quiz that's underway restarts if you leave mid-game, but at about 7 minutes, World Languages fits comfortably in one sitting.

How many questions are in World Languages?

World Languages has 15 multiple-choice questions. Each one has four answer options and an explanation that appears after you answer, so you learn something even when you miss.

Is World Languages free to play?

Yes. The entire SeniorBrainGames catalog — including World Languages — is free, with no sign-up required, no time limits, and no ads on top of the game. It also works offline once the page has loaded once.

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