View a FREE sample

This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. In Chapter 4, the author traces the development of English in what country?
(a) United Kingdom
(b) France
(c) Spain
(d) Norway

2. On what does a child's vocabulary rely?
(a) Geographic area
(b) IQ
(c) Nationality
(d) Exposure to the speech of the primary caregiver

3. From which tribe does England get its name?
(a) The Engles
(b) The Englees
(c) The Angels
(d) The Angles

4. It is an interesting ____________ that Americans attempt to imitate the British by using words and pronunciations that are not British at all or are no longer used.
(a) symbol
(b) mistake
(c) irony
(d) metaphor

5. What language is most commonly chosen by international businesses?
(a) French
(b) Japanese
(c) English
(d) Italian

6. The Celts are strongly influenced by which culture?
(a) Germanic
(b) Norwegian
(c) French
(d) Roman

7. Who is Noam Chomsky?
(a) An American linguist
(b) A British psychologist
(c) A French archaeologist
(d) A Russian writer

8. Chapter 6 addresses the changing pronunciation of which language over time?
(a) Italian
(b) English
(c) Celtic
(d) French

9. What did Sir William Jones recognize?
(a) The rhythm of the Romance languages
(b) Similarities between Sanskrit and languages of Europe
(c) The verb tenses of European languages
(d) The adaptability of the English language

10. In whose work can inconsistent spelling be found due to the event of #67?
(a) Chaucer
(b) Shakespeare
(c) Faulkner
(d) Dante

11. How many new words did Shakespeare invent?
(a) Over five hundred
(b) Over two hundred
(c) Over two thousand
(d) Over one thousand

12. According to the author, what is easy or difficult depending on the point of view?
(a) Phonics
(b) Pictographs
(c) Colloquialisms
(d) Spelling in English

13. What is DARE?
(a) Diary of Any Regional Experts
(b) Dictionary of American Real Estate
(c) Dictionary of American Regional English
(d) Dictionary of All Regional English

14. Why could the Neanderthals not keep up with the Cro-Magnons?
(a) They could not run as fast
(b) They did not have fire
(c) They couldn't communicate with the same complexity
(d) Their brains were not as big

15. In what country does the printing revolution take place?
(a) Ireland
(b) France
(c) England
(d) Wales

Short Answer Questions

1. During Norman rule, which words are appropriate for the upper class to use?

2. What does English manage to avoid that are present in other languages?

3. The author decides it is ______________ to divide the U.S. into distinct accents.

4. Language differences within a country are often ________________.

5. What happens when a group of native speakers dies out?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 392 words (approx. 2 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample