Tummy Time Trivia: Fun Digestive System Quiz for Kids

Explore your body! Easy, playful questions about how food travels, digests, and helps you grow. Perfect for curious kids 6+ — ready to test your tummy smarts?

  1. What organ makes a big bag to hold swallowed food?
    1. Small intestine
    2. Esophagus
    3. Stomach
    4. Liver
  2. Which of the following helps mash food: teeth, hair, or nails?
    1. nails
    2. hair
    3. teeth
    4. skin
  3. What tube moves food from mouth to stomach?
    1. Pharynx
    2. Trachea
    3. Esophagus
    4. Small intestine
  4. Why do we have saliva in our mouth?
    1. To moisten and digest food
    2. To produce white blood cells
    3. To cool the body like sweat
    4. To store vitamins in the mouth
  5. Who first used the word "digest" to mean breaking down food?
    1. Aristotle
    2. Galen
    3. Hippocrates
    4. Avicenna
  6. Which organ soaks up water from food the most?
    1. Small intestine
    2. Stomach
    3. Large intestine
    4. Liver
  7. What tiny finger-like parts help the small intestine absorb food?
    1. Rugae
    2. Microvilli
    3. Villi
    4. Haustra
  8. Which common drink can make your stomach hurt if there is too much?
    1. Coffee
    2. Orange juice
    3. Milk
    4. Energy drink

Answers and explanations

  1. Question: What organ makes a big bag to hold swallowed food?
    Answer: Stomach
    Explanation: The stomach is a muscular, expandable organ that forms a large pouch to store and begin digesting swallowed food using acid and enzymes. Fun fact: the stomach lining replaces itself every few days to protect against its own acidic digestive juices.
  2. Question: Which of the following helps mash food: teeth, hair, or nails?
    Answer: teeth
    Explanation: Teeth grind and break down food into smaller pieces so it can be swallowed and digested; humans have different types (incisors, canines, molars) specialized for cutting and chewing. Fun fact: molars provide most of the chewing power and can exert hundreds of pounds of force when crushing food.
  3. Question: What tube moves food from mouth to stomach?
    Answer: Esophagus
    Explanation: The esophagus is the muscular tube that propels swallowed food and liquids from the mouth to the stomach using coordinated contractions called peristalsis. Fun fact: the esophagus lining protects it from abrasion and its lower sphincter helps prevent stomach acid from rising back up.
  4. Question: Why do we have saliva in our mouth?
    Answer: To moisten and digest food
    Explanation: Saliva keeps the mouth and throat moist, helps form a food bolus, and begins carbohydrate digestion with enzymes like amylase; it also protects teeth and controls oral bacteria. Fun fact: saliva contains minerals and proteins that help remineralize enamel and neutralize acids, which helps prevent cC
  5. Question: Who first used the word "digest" to mean breaking down food?
    Answer: Hippocrates
    Explanation: The ancient Greek physician Hippocrates is credited with the earliest use of a term equivalent to “digest” to describe the body’s breaking down of food; his writings helped shift medicine toward natural physiological explanations. Interesting fact: Hippocratic texts laid groundwork for later humoral
  6. Question: Which organ soaks up water from food the most?
    Answer: Large intestine
    Explanation: The large intestine (colon) absorbs the majority of water from digested food, compacting waste into feces and helping maintain body fluid balance. Fun fact: although short, the large intestine hosts trillions of microbes that also help extract nutrients and ferment fibers into useful compounds like 
  7. Question: What tiny finger-like parts help the small intestine absorb food?
    Answer: Villi
    Explanation: Villi are tiny, finger-like projections lining the small intestine that increase its surface area for nutrient absorption; each villus contains blood vessels and a lymphatic vessel (lacteal) to transport absorbed nutrients. Interesting fact: together, villi and microscopic microvilli multiply the GI
  8. Question: Which common drink can make your stomach hurt if there is too much?
    Answer: Coffee
    Explanation: Coffee is acidic and contains caffeine, which can increase stomach acid and irritate the lining, causing pain or indigestion in some people. Fun fact: caffeine also relaxes the lower esophageal sphincter, which can worsen acid reflux for sensitive individuals.