These hard Jeopardy! questions stumped even the most clever contestants. How many can you get right?
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Category: Asian Geography
Clue: It’s the only country that borders both the Caspian Sea and the Persian Gulf.
Answer: Iran
On Oct. 12, 2017, the winner of Final Jeopardy came out on top with a grand total of $1, while his two opponents wound up with zero. But here’s what’s really crazy: The losers (“non-winners” in Jeopardy! parlance) went home with more money than the winner! That’s because according to the show’s rules, the contestant with the largest money total at the end of Final Jeopardy goes home with that amount of money, while the second- and third-place contestants get consolation prizes of $2,000 and $1,000, respectively. This was the Final Jeopardy clue that yielded such upside-down results.
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Category: Authors
Clue: In 1937, his sister said he had “hats of every description,” which he would use as a “foundation of his next book.”
Answer: Dr. Seuss
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Category: World Leaders
Clue: He came to power 34 days before Franklin D. Roosevelt and left it 19 days after him.
Answer: Adolf Hitler
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Category: 2014 Newsmakers
Clue: Both making news in June, these two Davids with similar last names are LeBron’s new coach and Eric Cantor’s conqueror.
Answer: David Blatt, who was hired by the Cleveland Cavaliers in June 2014 and coached LeBron James until 2016, and David Brat, who defeated House Majority Leader Eric Cantor in 2014 to serve in the U.S. House of Representatives.
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Category: Historical Figures
Clue: A 2012 poll by Britain’s National Army Museum voted this man, born in 1732, as the nation’s greatest military enemy.
Answer: George Washington
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Category: Sports Figures
Clue: He was featured on the Sept. 22, 1947, cover of Time with the caption, “He and the boss took a chance.”
Answer: Jackie Robinson
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Category: Wordplay
Clue: Subtract a letter from the name of a keystroke found in computer commands, and you get this violent reaction to social change.
Answer: Backlash (from “backslash”)
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Category: Coats of Arms
Clue: This country’s coat of arms features a palm tree and a 19th-century American sailing ship.
Answer: Liberia
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Category: French Food History
Clue: A popular product was born when Jean Naigeon of this city substituted the juice of unripe grapes for vinegar.
Answer: Dijon
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Category: Tony Nominations
Clue: Although she has appeared in only two Broadway musicals, she got Tony nominations for both, for 1962 and 1964.
Answer: Barbra Streisand
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Category: Inventions
Clue: This machine was invented in 1929. The government began buying them to help prevent any more in a series of Army Air Corps fatalities.
Answer: The flight simulator
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Category: The U.S. Government
Clue: On Aug. 15, 1994, 59 years and one day after Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the original act, Bill Clinton made this an independent agency.
Answer: The Social Security Administration
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Category: 21st-Century Thought
Clue: The title subject of a 2007 bestseller, it was discovered in Australia, where today it’s a state emblem.
Answer: The black swan
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Category: The Oscars
Clue: This Brit is the only actor to get Oscar nominations for playing two real-life U.S. Presidents, both for 1990s films.
Answer: Anthony Hopkins
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Category: Hymns
Finally, here’s one of the hard Jeopardy questions we’re almost glad the contestants got wrong—because one guesser’s answer yielded such a hilarious response from Alex and the audience:
Clue: A Christian hymn and a Jewish holiday hymn are both titled this, also the name of a 2009 Tony-nominated musical.
Answer: Rock of Ages, though we prefer the hilarious guess from contestant Choyon Manjrekar: “What is Kinky Boots?”
FAQs
How are Final Jeopardy questions selected for the show?
Final Jeopardy questions are crafted by the show’s writers, who develop categories and clues from a wide range of sources before submitting them to the head writer for review and approval. A team of researchers also fact-checks each question.
What are the most challenging topics or categories for Jeopardy! contestants?
Some of the most challenging Jeopardy! categories have proven to be the ones that push players beyond everyday trivia knowledge. For instance, wordplay and pun-based clues are notorious for creating hard Jeopardy! questions because they demand quick lateral thinking instead of simple recall. Similarly, classical literature and poetry often trip players up, especially when the show pulls from obscure works or less familiar authors.
Another classic stumper is the category of world geography questions that go beyond the basics. Contestants may know capitals and countries, but questions about rivers, small islands or historic regions often prove far more difficult. The same goes for opera and classical music, which regularly make the list of hard Jeopardy! questions—particularly when clues involve arias, composers or technical terminology.
Science and math categories also serve up tough quiz questions that can leave contestants scratching their heads when formulas or advanced theories enter the mix.
Has anyone ever answered every Jeopardy! question correctly in a single game?
No, there is no record of someone answering every question correctly in a single game of Jeopardy! including Final Jeopardy.
What happens if all contestants get Final Jeopardy wrong?
If all contestants answer Final Jeopardy incorrectly and finish with a score of zero or less, there is no winner for that game. There are new contestants featured in the next episode.
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Sources:
- The New York Times: “The Author Himself Was a Cat in the Hat”
- Time: “Why the Cavaliers Fired David Blatt”
- U.S. Congress: “Representative David Brat”
- Time: “Rookie of the Year”
- Social Security History: “Social Security History”
- Time: “The Most Challenging Questions in Jeopardy’s History (According to AI)”
- Jeopardy!: “Inside the Jeopardy! Writers Room”
