Quiz template · Events
Hanukkah trivia questions and answers
20 questions on Hanukkah: the menorah and the shamash, the dreidel letters, latkes and sufganiyot, the Maccabees, and how many candles you burn in eight nights.
Easy 20 questions 30 s each · about 17 min Checked against two sources
A round for a Hanukkah party, a December office social or a classroom that is learning about winter holidays. It covers what people see at a Hanukkah table and the story behind it. Why the foods are fried, what the dreidel letters mean, who the Maccabees fought and in which order the candles get lit. Nothing in it needs a Jewish upbringing, and anyone who grew up with the holiday will enjoy the harder ones at the end. Twenty questions take about 17 minutes.
How to run it
- Put a dreidel on each table and play a real round after question 14, once everyone knows what gimel means. Chocolate gelt makes the stakes.
- Pause after question 7, the oil. Ask who in the room has a family latke recipe and what goes in it. The sweet versus savoury argument fills five minutes on its own.
- Questions 16 to 20 are app only and include the hardest three. Question 20, the total number of candles, is the tie-breaker.
Questions and answers
1The word Hanukkah is Hebrew for what?Easy
- ALight
- BDedication
- CMiracle
- DEight
Reveal answer
B. Dedication
It comes from the Hebrew root meaning to dedicate. The holiday marks the day the Maccabees rededicated the Temple in Jerusalem after winning it back.
2Hanukkah remembers the rededication of the Temple in which city?Easy
- AJerusalem
- BAlexandria
- CBabylon
- DAthens
Reveal answer
A. Jerusalem
The Second Temple stood in Jerusalem. The Maccabees took the city back in the second century BCE, cleared out the Greek statues and restored Jewish worship.
3On a Hanukkah menorah, the helper candle used to light the others has a name. What is it?Easy
- AThe shofar
- BThe sukkah
- CThe seder
- DThe shamash
Reveal answer
D. The shamash
Shamash means attendant or servant. It sits higher or lower than the other eight so nobody mistakes it for one of the Hanukkah lights, and it stays lit after the others are kindled.
4How many candles does a Hanukkah menorah hold, counting the helper?Easy
- ASeven
- BEight
- CNine
- DTwelve
Reveal answer
C. Nine
Eight for the eight nights plus the shamash. The seven-branched menorah is a different object, the one that stood in the ancient Temple.
5Which fried potato dish is the classic Hanukkah food of Eastern European Jewish cooking?Easy
- ALatkes
- BMatzah
- CChallah
- DKugel
Reveal answer
A. Latkes
Latkes are grated potato pancakes fried in oil, and the oil is the point. Fried foods recall the oil that kept the Temple menorah burning.
6Sufganiyot, the Hanukkah favourite in Israel, are what?Easy
- AHoney cakes
- BJelly doughnuts
- CCheese pancakes
- DSesame biscuits
Reveal answer
B. Jelly doughnuts
They are round doughnuts fried in oil, usually filled with jam and dusted with sugar. Like latkes, they are fried to recall the oil of the Temple menorah.
7When the Maccabees reclaimed the Temple, they found only one day's supply of what?Easy
- APure olive oil
- BWine
- CFlour
- DIncense
Reveal answer
A. Pure olive oil
The oil was needed to light the Temple menorah. The Talmud says that one day's supply burned for eight days, until new oil could be prepared, which is why the holiday lasts eight nights.
8The chocolate coins given to children at Hanukkah are called what?Easy
- AKippah
- BKosher
- CGelt
- DGefilte
Reveal answer
C. Gelt
Gelt is Yiddish for money. The older custom was to give real coins, and chocolate versions appeared in the twentieth century when sweet makers saw the opportunity.
9Who led the revolt that the Hanukkah story remembers?Medium
- AKing David
- BJudah Maccabee
- CMoses
- DKing Solomon
Reveal answer
B. Judah Maccabee
Judah took over the fight from his father Mattathias around 166 BCE. His small force beat a much larger army and retook Jerusalem.
10The Maccabees fought against which empire?Medium
- AThe Roman Empire
- BThe Persian Empire
- CThe Seleucid Empire
- DThe Babylonian Empire
Reveal answer
C. The Seleucid Empire
The Seleucids were Syrian Greeks, successors of Alexander the Great's generals, who tried to force Greek religion and customs on Judea.
11Hanukkah begins on the 25th day of which month in the Hebrew calendar?Medium
- ANisan
- BTishrei
- CKislev
- DAdar
Reveal answer
C. Kislev
Kislev falls in late autumn or early winter, so the first candle is usually lit in December and sometimes in late November. Nisan is the month of Passover.
12The four Hebrew letters on a dreidel stand for a phrase meaning what?Medium
- AA great miracle happened there
- BLight the candles tonight
- CGive thanks for the oil
- DEight nights of joy
Reveal answer
A. A great miracle happened there
Nun, gimel, hei and shin stand for nes gadol haya sham. The there is Jerusalem, as seen from the Jewish communities of Europe where the game grew up.
13In Israel the last dreidel letter is a pe instead of a shin. What does that change in the phrase?Hard
- AMiracle becomes victory
- BGreat becomes small
- CHappened becomes will happen
- DThere becomes here
Reveal answer
D. There becomes here
Pe stands for po, which means here. In Israel the miracle happened on the spot, so the wording changes to match.
14In the dreidel game, what happens when the top lands on gimel?Medium
- AThe spinner takes the whole pot
- BThe spinner takes nothing
- CThe spinner takes half
- DThe spinner puts one in
Reveal answer
A. The spinner takes the whole pot
Nun means nothing, hei means half and shin means put one in. After a gimel everyone adds a piece to rebuild the pot, and the game ends when one player has everything.
15Which hymn is traditionally sung right after the Hanukkah candles are lit?Medium
- AHava Nagila
- BAdon Olam
- CDayenu
- DMa'oz Tzur
Reveal answer
D. Ma'oz Tzur
Its English version is known as Rock of Ages. The verses recall times when the Jewish people were rescued, with the Hanukkah story among them.
5 more questions in the full pack. Play all 20 live, free.
Get all 20 questions, ready to play live - free for 100 playersQuestions about this template
When is Hanukkah in 2026?
Hanukkah 2026 begins at nightfall on Friday 4 December and runs for eight nights, ending on Saturday 12 December. The date moves each year because the holiday follows the Hebrew calendar, starting on the 25th of Kislev.
Can I play it at a party or on a video call?
Yes. Press Go live and show the PIN or QR code on a screen. Guests join from their phones, answer within the timer and see the leaderboard after each question. The free plan covers 100 players in a session.
Do guests need an app or an account?
No. They open the link or scan the code in a browser, type the PIN and a name, and play. Only the host needs a RiLiFi account.
Can I edit the questions for children or for my own community's customs?
Yes. Use this template to make a copy, then simplify the wording, swap in your own traditions or remove the harder questions at the end.
Sources
Every answer shown here was checked against two sources, listed below. Links last checked 29 October 2026.
- Hanukkah - Wikipediaen.wikipedia.org
- chabad.orgchabad.org
- Judas Maccabeus - Wikipediaen.wikipedia.org
- Hanukkah menorah - Wikipediaen.wikipedia.org
- chabad.orgchabad.org
- chabad.orgchabad.org
- Latke - Wikipediaen.wikipedia.org
- Sufganiyah - Wikipediaen.wikipedia.org
- Hanukkah gelt - Wikipediaen.wikipedia.org
- Maccabean Revolt - Wikipediaen.wikipedia.org
- Dreidel - Wikipediaen.wikipedia.org
- chabad.orgchabad.org
- chabad.orgchabad.org
- Ma'oz Tzur - Wikipediaen.wikipedia.org
- chabad.orgchabad.org
More templates
Start free
Run it live with your group.
Players join from their phones with a PIN. No app to install, free for up to 100 participants per session.
