View a FREE sample

This quiz consists of 5 multiple choice and 5 short answer questions through Chapter 9.8 | Chapter 9.9.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What letter, when preceding a consonant, greatly irritated Henry James like a "morose grinding of the back teeth?"
(a) G.
(b) E.
(c) R.
(d) T.

2. Which double negative word is primarily found in Shakespeare?
(a) Not.
(b) Never.
(c) No.
(d) Nor.

3. What word was "coatee" used as a diminutive for?
(a) Beard.
(b) Hat.
(c) Coat.
(d) Shawl.

4. Which word do Americans use for "angry" that was once an English provincialism considered base?
(a) Pissed.
(b) Mad.
(c) Irritated.
(d) Furious.

5. How does Mencken characterize the vulgar American habitual use of the double negative?
(a) With "unconscious loathing."
(b) With "happy fecundity."
(c) With "sturdy fidelity."
(d) With "periodic intensity."

Short Answer Questions

1. In what sort of languages are double negatives "perfectly allowable"?

2. In what language did the American derivative "coyote" originate?

3. In terms of politics, an American candidate "runs" for office. What does an English candidate do?

4. What is the physical basis to which the nasal twang of Americans is ascribed?

5. What purpose does the double negative primarily serve?

(see the answer key)

This section contains 177 words (approx. 1 page at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample