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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. From what do most languages derive?
(a) South America
(b) Cro-Magnon utterances
(c) Sign language
(d) Indo-European language family

2. Language has the ability to do what?
(a) Expand and grow
(b) Go beyond national borders
(c) Create peace among countries
(d) Unite global communities

3. Which part of Spain often engages in violence to protect its language?
(a) Basque region
(b) Valencian region
(c) Barcelona
(d) Madrid

4. What profession encourages expressions that make numbers and letters clearer when communicating by radio?
(a) Pilots
(b) Ship captains
(c) Football coaches
(d) Cab drivers

5. When does modern English begin to emerge?
(a) The 19th century
(b) The 15th century
(c) The 20th century
(d) The 12th century

6. How can English be particularly complex for non-native English speakers?
(a) The vowel sounds are fixed
(b) The alphabet is long
(c) There are many grammar rules
(d) Many words can be used in different ways

7. Many English speakers promote the particular variety of English that they speak while ____________________ the dialects of speakers from other regions.
(a) mimicking
(b) trying
(c) ridiculing
(d) studying

8. According to the author, varieties of English are heavily influenced by what?
(a) geographic reasons
(b) social reasons
(c) financial reasons
(d) ancestral reasons

9. Who is the Venerable Bede?
(a) A bishop
(b) A monk
(c) A rabbi
(d) A priest

10. In what time period does the event from #67 occur?
(a) 1500s
(b) 1930s
(c) 1960s
(d) 1800s

11. The English writing system developed from what?
(a) Markings on trees
(b) Cave drawings
(c) Etchings on leaves
(d) Pictographs

12. Regional trends have common accent features but no speakers who _________________________________.
(a) all speak in exactly the same way
(b) can emulate someone else
(c) can be emulated
(d) can teach proper English

13. For years, concern for spelling has been neglected over imposing what?
(a) Fines
(b) Reporting
(c) Rules
(d) Research

14. What allows a speaker to express class status?
(a) Accents
(b) Antonyms
(c) Sentence structure
(d) Synonyms

15. 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) metaphor
(b) mistake
(c) symbol
(d) irony

Short Answer Questions

1. What is phonology?

2. What language and culture does the answer to #44 bring to England?

3. What is the study of the English language considered to be?

4. What helps a listener and speaker to use the correct word when in doubt?

5. What is common to most English speakers?

(see the answer keys)

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