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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) Compromise for cheaper printing.
(b) Convenience.
(c) Anti-colonialism.
(d) Affectation.

2. Which is the second factor that Mencken identifies as an impediment to the growth of the American language in Chapter 3.1?
(a) Lack of a national literature.
(b) Political disharmony.
(c) Regional diversity.
(d) Territorial expansiveness.

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

4. According to Mencken, the English opposition to American spelling transcends the academic and takes on the character of what?
(a) The ethical.
(b) The religious.
(c) The patriotic.
(d) The political.

5. Which is the first factor that Mencken identifies as an immediate impediment to the growth of the American language in Chapter 3.1?
(a) Political disharmony.
(b) Lack of a national literature.
(c) Territorial expansiveness.
(d) Regional diversity.

Short Answer Questions

1. What does Mencken list as dominant the English alternative for the word "mail"?

2. Which of the following groups of foreign immigrants does Mencken not attribute influence over American English in Chapter 6.4?

3. What term did John Witherspoon coin, framing it within the context of vulgarity?

4. Who "tries" a legal case in England?

5. Which of the following did the African slaves NOT introduce to American English?

(see the answer key)

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