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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. In what language did the American derivative "coyote" originate?
(a) Mayan.
(b) French.
(c) Aztec.
(d) Spanish.

2. Which of the following groups of immigrants does Mencken claim have a profound effect on not only the American vocabulary, but also its pronunciation and idiom?
(a) Irish.
(b) Danish.
(c) Italian.
(d) Scottish.

3. How do the English pronounce the first syllable in "lieutenant"?
(a) Yeift.
(b) Left.
(c) Lee-oo.
(d) Loo.

4. What purpose does the double negative primarily serve?
(a) Rhetorical circuitry.
(b) Confusion.
(c) Reinforcement.
(d) Syntactical compactness.

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

Short Answer Questions

1. According to Mencken, how do the English pronounce "been?"

2. What word was "coatee" used as a diminutive for?

3. In what language does Mencken state the double negative was once "quite respectable?"

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

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

(see the answer key)

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