How many socks do you need to pull out to guarantee a matching pair?

Quiz 42 opened with a sock drawer and closed with an argument. Only 51% of players solved the classic matching pair puzzle, and no question split the states harder. The week averaged 11.3 out of 15.

How many socks do you need to pull to guarantee a matching pair?

Three. With 6 black and 6 white socks jumbled in the drawer, there are only two colours, so the most you can pull without a match is two odd ones. Sock number three has to match one of them.

Just 51% of players got it, and the state by state results disagreed by almost 60 points, the biggest split we have ever recorded. Somewhere in Australia, an entire state is very good at getting dressed in the dark.

Average score
11.3/15
Answers correct
75%
Hardest question
33%

How many years has NAIDOC Week been celebrated?

50 years. NAIDOC Week celebrates the histories, cultures and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, and it marked its 50th anniversary this year.

62% of players knew the milestone. A good one to talk about around the dinner table, well beyond quiz night.

Which flags are Australian state flags and which one is the impostor?

Flags odd one out

Have a look at the flags above. They all carry the Union Jack, but the odd one out was B, the British Virgin Islands. The other three are the state flags of New South Wales, Victoria and their neighbours.

70% of players spotted the impostor, which is a strong result given how deliberately samey those flags are. The Australia category still ended up the hardest topic of the week.

Where players came from

Share of the week's plays by state

0% 50% 100% VIC 29.1% NSW 24.4% SA 14% QLD 14% WA 9.3% INT 7%

Every question, ranked by difficulty

How many players got each one right

Every question from the quiz ranked hardest to easiest, with the percentage of players who answered correctly
Rank Question Type Percent correct
1 In Scrabble, how much is the word QUIZ worth if the Q is on a triple word score? Normal 33%
2 You have 12 socks jumbled together in a drawer - 6 black and 6 white - and the light is of... Normal 51%
3 NAIDOC Week celebrates Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. In 2026 it hits a bi... Hard 62%

Premium members see the full breakdown

Unlock the correct rate for all 15 questions, plus the quiz archive and your family's stats.

That was Quiz 42: three socks, fifty years and one sneaky flag. If the socks got you, take comfort that they got half the country too.

Ready for a new challenge? Play this week's quiz, browse hundreds more questions on our kids trivia page, or replay past quizzes in the quiz archive.

How to play

  • 15 family-friendly questions.
  • This is a self marking quiz – tap on the question to reveal the answer and mark correct or incorrect.
  • Submit your answers and if you have an account, you can compare you score with the community average.
  • Let the younger kids have a go at the easy questions first, then everyone else can jump in!