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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What word does Mencken find Dr. John Dewey using in place of the word "opium?"
(a) Crack.
(b) Poppy.
(c) Dope.
(d) Skag.

2. Which term do English dictionaries all describe as an Americanism from the comparative list in Chapter 4.1, despite the English version being frequently used in America?
(a) Freight.
(b) Hog-pen.
(c) Railroad.
(d) Rooster.

3. Where was the broad "a" principally established prior to the Civil War?
(a) California.
(b) The Midwest.
(c) The Southeast.
(d) New England.

4. What does Mencken state is neglected by those who are professional trained to investigate it?
(a) Philological anomalies.
(b) The vulgate.
(c) Formal grammar.
(d) Idiosyncrasies.

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) Regional diversity.
(c) Lack of a national literature.
(d) Territorial expansiveness.

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

7. Which European language has exerted the most influence on the American language?
(a) German.
(b) Spanish.
(c) Italian.
(d) French.

8. What word in common honorifics did Edwin S. Gould protest against omitting in 1867?
(a) Very.
(b) Right.
(c) The.
(d) Most.

9. What word did the editor of the Westminster Gazette substitute for the incomprehensible dash in the mangled Americanism of Rupert Brooke?
(a) Bottom.
(b) Jugs.
(c) Brains.
(d) Boots.

10. Who is the author of "Dissertations on the English Language"?
(a) Noah Webster.
(b) Thomas Jefferson.
(c) Benjamin Franklin.
(d) H.L. Mencken.

11. What is the English word for a collection of colleges?
(a) A Cardinal.
(b) A Maltin.
(c) A University.
(d) A Collegiate.

12. What word in American is used for the English word "shoe?"
(a) Sandal.
(b) Slipper.
(c) Boot.
(d) Footing.

13. What vowel sound was dominant in 18th century New England pronunciation, despite common protests to the contrary?
(a) Broad a.
(b) Broad o.
(c) Flat e.
(d) Flat a.

14. What word was "coatee" used as a diminutive for?
(a) Beard.
(b) Shawl.
(c) Coat.
(d) Hat.

15. What event does Mencken credit with strengthening the obfuscation of distinction between American and British English?
(a) The bombing of London.
(b) The advent of the transatlantic telephone line.
(c) The French Revolution.
(d) The First World War.

Short Answer Questions

1. What notable author was the first Englishman to carry Americanisms successfully back to his home?

2. What is the universal substitute for the word "ye" as described in Chapter 6.2?

3. Which letter of the alphabet do Americans differ in pronunciation from other English-speaking countries?

4. Who is the author of "Travels in North America," published in 1827?

5. What does John S. Farmer describe the Western vernacular as being?

(see the answer keys)

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