15 Jeopardy! Questions the Average Joe Can Ace—But Contestants Can’t
“Jeopardy!” trivia isn’t easy. Most contestants have an incredible amount of knowledge about a diverse range of topics.
However, there are certain topic categories where the general American audience can outplay even the smartest contestants. When it comes to pop culture, sports, or answers that seem too easy for Final Jeopardy!, contestants often stumble or overthink.
Of course, the difficulty of a “Jeopardy!” clue is subjective, and there’s no doubt that some of the clues we picked for this list aren’t easy for everyone. Still, you’ll probably find at least some of the answers listed below so obvious that you’ll wonder if you should apply for the show.
1: Award Winning Actress
Pop culture fans stared at the screen aghast when not a single “Jeopardy!” contestant managed to get this question right. The clue was: “Already an Emmy winner, in 2017 she won an Oscar for the same role that had won her a Tony.”
The contestants couldn’t even provide decent guesses. One of them said, “Who is my mom?” and a second answered, “Who is, boy? This is fun.” The answer was Viola Davis.
2: Modern Words
“Jeopardy!” contestants are great at trivia, but if there’s a gap in their knowledge, it’s often around more modern concepts. In this case, the contestants couldn’t guess a contemporary word.
The clue was “In 1994 WIRED magazine described this 4-letter word as an idea leaping ‘from mind to mind … as viruses leap from body to body’.” The correct question was “What is a meme?”
3: Fashion Forward
Designer fashion fanatics were screaming at their TVs when “Jeopardy!” aired this final clue: “Translated from Roman numerals, ’55’ appears in luggage & watch product names from a company founded by this man.” All three contestants made the same guess, and all three got it wrong.
“Louis Vuitton,” the confident contestants said. Of course, the answer was Versace.
4: Hamilton
Lin Manuel Miranda’s hit musical Hamilton made a splash when it came out in 2015. The show was (and is) so popular that a 2016 PBS documentary that showcased the making of the Broadway musical drew in 3.6 million viewers. Millions more either saw the show or memorized the soundtrack.
Apparently, though, “Jeopardy!” contestants weren’t among the many fans. The musical contains a famous song about Aaron Burr’s love letters to Theodosia. Yet, when “Jeopardy!” aired a clue in 2018 referencing a letter to “My dearest Theodosia,” none of the contestants guessed it was written by Aaron Burr.
5: Long Novels
During Final Jeopardy! producers aired a clue that read, “In a recent poll of 125 authors, this long 1870s novel about a woman ranked as the greatest work of fiction of all time.” If you’re not a fan of literature, that may not be such an easy clue.
Still, many could have made better guesses than the contestants. One person guessed The Scarlett Letter, which is a play and typically around 200 pages, not exactly long for a novel. The real answer was Anna Karenina, which is around 800 pages long.
6: Hollywood Heartaches
“Jeopardy!” contestants are smart, but they’re not always aware of the most recent pop-culture events. Many tabloid consumers could outplay them if the category were Hollywood-based.
For example, in 2018, “Jeopardy!” aired this clue: “This actor has never been nominated for acting. He won, though, as a writer for 1997 & as a producer for 2012.” The contestants were stumped, but there’s no doubt many home audience members knew the answer was Ben Affleck.
7: Famous Doctors
If you’re an average American, there are probably only a few doctors you’d be able to recall off the top of your head. Perhaps “Jeopardy!” contestants are contending with a longer list of known scientists and physicians because none of them could guess the answer to this seemingly obvious clue.
The board read: “Not an artist himself, he inspired the Surrealists but thought them “absolute cranks” until he met Dali in London in 1938.” The word “surrealist” should have been the big hint because the answer was a doctor known for analyzing dreams and the subconscious mind. His name was Sigmond Freud.
8: Caught Up
In 2019, “Jeopardy!” contestants got caught up on the wrong part of a relatively obvious clue. During the Final Jeopardy! round, producers aired this clue: “This denomination takes its name from the day, as told in the New Testament, when the Holy Spirit descended on the Apostles.”
All three contestants seemed stuck on the word “day” and named themselves the Seventh-day Adventists. However, religious members of the audience knew the day the Holy Spirit descended was the day of Pentecost. The correct response was “Pentecostalism.”
9: Rudimentary Religion
Given some of the questions contestants regularly miss, it seems few of them have much of a religious background or education. In this 2019 clue under the category “From the Desk of the Pope” the board read, “A 1919 letter quotes Jesus, ‘Go into the whole world and preach the gospel’ & notes the vigilance, energy & hardships of these workers.”
“What are soldiers?” one contestant guessed. Of course, religious watchers knew neither Jesus nor the Pope called on soldiers to preach the gospel to the world in 1919. The right answer was “Who are missionaries?”
10: Top Paid Athletes
Though many Americans are sports fans, many “Jeopardy!” contestants aren’t. That might be why this 2020 question stumped contestants.
The clue read, “On Forbes’ 2020 list of the 100 highest-paid athletes, at age 50 this active individual sportsman is the oldest.” The answer was golfer Phil Mickelson.
11: Obvious History
Usually “Jeopardy!” contestants do well on historical questions, but it seems like they thought a bit too hard about this one. Many Americans know the U.K. has a history of colonialism and probably could have guessed this answer, but it left all three contestants stumped in a Final Jeopardy! round.
The clue asked contestants to name the two-letter abbreviation for the country that held 13 areas on the African continent in 1945. None of them managed to come up with the “U.K.”
12: Bible Stumping
Church attendance is declining across the country, but according to Gallup polling, 67% of American adults say they attended religious services weekly while they were growing up. It seems like few “Jeopardy!” players were among them, though.
During a Final Jeopardy! round, contestants received the following clue: “He tells his son not to worry about the lamb for the burnt offering; God will provide it.” None of the contestants managed to guess Abraham, a key figure in Muslim, Christian, and Jewish faiths.
13: Irish Ignorance
The category was British Army History, which doesn’t sound easy. However, you didn’t need any knowledge of military history to come up with the question for this clue.
During Final Jeopardy!, the board read, “The Army’s longest continuous campaign, 1969-2007, began in this Northern Ireland city known by either of 2 different names.” Those with a rudimentary knowledge of Ireland’s geography could easily guess the city that has two names, but the contestants got this one wrong.
All three answered, “Belfast.” The correct response was Derry or Londonderry.
14: Misunderstood
“Jeopardy!” isn’t just about trivia recall; it’s also about reading comprehension. Understanding what question the clue is asking for can be difficult.
For example, in 2021, “Jeopardy!” aired this clue: “After 9/11, designer Milton Glaser modified this iconic logo of his, adding a bruise & the words “More Than Ever.” Two contestants guessed company names rather than the names of a logo. The correct response was, “What is the I Heart New York logo?”
15: Logical Geography
This Final Jeopardy! clue contained multiple hints, but none of the contestants caught all of them. The clue read, “60,000 are at rest in a National Memorial Cemetery opened in 1949 in the crater of an extinct volcano in this state.”
Each contestant guessed a state known for volcanic activity, like California. However, none of them seemed to pay close enough attention to the time period.
The correct answer was Hawaii. The National Memorial Cemetery interred nearly 400 unidentified sailors from the attack on Pearl Harbor.
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