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This quiz consists of 5 multiple choice and 5 short answer questions through Chapter 8.3 | Chapter 8.4.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Which impulse behind American imitation of English orthography is more influential?
(a) Anti-colonialism.
(b) Convenience.
(c) Affectation.
(d) Compromise for cheaper printing.

2. According to the tale spread by William Gifford, what language was supposed to be substituted for English during the Revolutionary War?
(a) Hebrew.
(b) French.
(c) Latin.
(d) Spanish.

3. From what language does the English word "moose" come?
(a) Cherokee.
(b) Algonquin.
(c) Italian.
(d) English.

4. What does Mencken list as dominant the English alternative for the word "mail"?
(a) Postals.
(b) Post.
(c) Letters.
(d) Shipping.

5. According to Mencken, which title is subject to the greatest divergence in usage?
(a) General.
(b) Professor.
(c) Doctor.
(d) The Honorable.

Short Answer Questions

1. What is the English meaning of the Hawaiian word "lanai"?

2. Which of the following is a term used by philologists to indicate the "instinctive search, etymologically unsound, for short roots in long words"?

3. What American writer does Mencken claim likely inspired envy in British writers?

4. Which 1914 English dictionary made many important concessions to American spellings?

5. Which is the second factor that Mencken identifies as an impediment to the growth of the American language in Chapter 3.1?

(see the answer key)

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