Zodiac Signs Quiz: Star Sign Dates, Elements & Symbols Trivia

This zodiac signs quiz covers all twelve star signs from Aries to Pisces, including their dates, elements and symbols, and the real constellations of Leo, Scorpio and the rest that gave them their names. Ten questions, 90 seconds, answers explained below.

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🎯 Daily Trivia Challenge • 🧠 10 Questions • ⏱️ 90 Seconds

Question 1 / 10 Time: 90s

Symbols
Which zodiac sign is represented by a lion?
Basics
How many signs are there in the Western zodiac?
Symbols
Which zodiac sign is symbolized by two fish?
Dates
Someone born on December 25 has which star sign?
Elements
Which of these is NOT one of the four elements used in Western astrology?
Symbols
Which zodiac sign is represented by a set of scales?
Astronomy
Which constellation outside the traditional zodiac does the Sun also pass through each year?
Elements
Which of these star signs is a water sign?
Astronomy
Why does the Sun no longer sit in the constellation that matches most zodiac dates?
Word Origins
The word zodiac comes from a Greek phrase meaning what?

Explanations: answer key for all 10 questions

Q1: Which zodiac sign is represented by a lion?
Answer: Leo
Leo covers birthdays from about July 23 to August 22, in the middle of northern summer. In astrology it belongs to the fire element and is linked with the Sun.
Q2: How many signs are there in the Western zodiac?
Answer: 12
The Western zodiac divides the Sun's yearly path across the sky into 12 equal sections of 30 degrees. Twelve sections of 30 degrees make up the full 360-degree circle.
Q3: Which zodiac sign is symbolized by two fish?
Answer: Pisces
Pisces, the last sign of the zodiac, is drawn as two fish tied together and covers roughly February 19 to March 20. Aquarius, the sign just before it, is the water bearer.
Q4: Someone born on December 25 has which star sign?
Answer: Capricorn
Capricorn runs from about December 22 to January 19, so Christmas Day falls early in the sign. Capricorn's symbol is the sea-goat, a goat with the tail of a fish.
Q5: Which of these is NOT one of the four elements used in Western astrology?
Answer: Metal
Western astrology groups the 12 signs into four elements, fire, earth, air and water, with three signs in each. Metal belongs to the five elements of the Chinese tradition instead.
Q6: Which zodiac sign is represented by a set of scales?
Answer: Libra
Libra, roughly September 23 to October 22, is the only zodiac sign represented by an object rather than a person or an animal. The scales stand for balance and fairness.
Q7: Which constellation outside the traditional zodiac does the Sun also pass through each year?
Answer: Ophiuchus
Under the official constellation borders, the Sun crosses Ophiuchus, the serpent bearer, from about November 29 to December 17. Astrology kept its traditional 12 signs and does not include it.
Q8: Which of these star signs is a water sign?
Answer: Scorpio
Scorpio is a water sign together with Cancer and Pisces. Aries is a fire sign, and Gemini is an air sign alongside Libra and Aquarius.
Q9: Why does the Sun no longer sit in the constellation that matches most zodiac dates?
Answer: Earth's axis slowly wobbles
Earth's axis traces a slow circle about every 26,000 years, a motion called precession. Over roughly 2,000 years it has shifted the sky by about one sign, so the Sun often sits in the constellation before your sign.
Q10: The word zodiac comes from a Greek phrase meaning what?
Answer: Circle of animals
Zodiac comes from the Greek zōidiakos kyklos, the circle of little animals, because most of its signs are creatures. The scales of Libra are the one sign that is an object.

Zodiac Signs Quiz – The Twelve Signs and the Sky Behind Them

The zodiac is a band of sky that the Sun, the Moon and the planets appear to travel through over the year. Astronomers in ancient Babylon split it into twelve equal parts around the 5th century BC, and the Greeks later gave the signs the names most people know today, from Aries the ram to Pisces the fish. In the 2nd century AD, the astronomer Ptolemy wrote down the system in a form that is still used in Western horoscopes.

Astrology is a cultural tradition rather than a science, but the constellations behind the signs are real, and their story says a lot about how people have watched the sky for thousands of years.

Each sign is also given a ruling planet and a quality, cardinal, fixed or mutable, which astrologers use to describe how the sign is said to behave. Most people know only their Sun sign, the sign the Sun was in on the day they were born, but a full birth chart also places the Moon and the planets in the signs.

What This Quiz Teaches

This quiz is for anyone who reads their horoscope, likes star sign trivia, or wants to know the astronomy behind the signs.

The symbol and rough dates of each of the 12 signs
How the signs are grouped into fire, earth, air and water
Why your birthday sign may not match where the Sun really is on that day
Which thirteenth constellation the Sun crosses every year
Where the word zodiac comes from

Quick Facts About the Zodiac

Virgo is the largest constellation in the zodiac, and Cancer is the faintest.
The exact start and end dates of each sign shift by a day from year to year, which is why different horoscopes list slightly different dates.
The Chinese zodiac is a separate system of 12 animals that change by year, not by month.
The Sun spends very different lengths of time in the real zodiac constellations, from about a week in Scorpius to more than six weeks in Virgo.
Each of the four elements has three signs, and each element contains one sign from each season.
The ancient Greeks counted the scales of Libra as the claws of the scorpion before Libra became a sign of its own.