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This quiz consists of 5 multiple choice and 5 short answer questions through Chapter 3.1 | Chapter 3.2.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Which letter of the alphabet do Americans differ in pronunciation from other English-speaking countries?
(a) X.
(b) Z.
(c) J.
(d) W.

2. How many classifications of Americanisms does Bartlett postulate in his 1859 dictionary?
(a) Nine.
(b) Three.
(c) Four.
(d) Forty-two.

3. According to Chapter 2.6, what regional pronunciation is erroneously thought by some to have superior authority regarding English pronunciation?
(a) Boston.
(b) South-eastern.
(c) Chicago.
(d) New York.

4. What language does Mencken quote Sidney Low as saying is not taught to English youth?
(a) Greek.
(b) Russian.
(c) American.
(d) Latin.

5. Which Founding Father is said to have sought to establish a new American alphabet?
(a) John Hancock.
(b) George Washington.
(c) Thomas Jefferson.
(d) Benjamin Franklin.

Short Answer Questions

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

2. What is the principal reason Mencken states that the English language has not greatly diverged since the foundation of the United States of America?

3. Which London newspaper lamented the "menace" that American movies offer to the purity of the English language?

4. What event does Mencken credit with strengthening the obfuscation of distinction between American and British English?

5. What vowel sound was dominant in 18th century New England pronunciation, despite common protests to the contrary?

(see the answer key)

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