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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. How many children did the Merretts have?
(a) Four.
(b) Six.
(c) Seven.
(d) Two.

2. When was Murray invited to Oxford?
(a) April 26th, 1878.
(b) May 8th, 1876.
(c) May 8th, 1878.
(d) April 21st, 1976.

3. Who was the most famous editor of the Old English Dictionary?
(a) James Murray.
(b) Frederick Furnivall.
(c) Dr. Minor.
(d) Dr. Sweet.

4. At what age was William sent to the United States?
(a) Twenty-two.
(b) Twelve.
(c) Fourteen.
(d) Nine.

5. Why did the demand for dictionaries increase according to the author in Chapter 4?
(a) Many of the original dictionaries were burned.
(b) People wanted to learn about more difficult words.
(c) The language changed markedly.
(d) More immigrants came to England.

Short Answer Questions

1. Merrett's killer was from ______________.

2. What kind of work did the Minors do in Ceylon?

3. What kind of Christianity did the Murray family follow?

4. What was the name of Eastman Minor's second wife?

5. What was the name of Murray's first wife?

Short Essay Questions

1. How did Minor's branding of a deserting Irish soldier become connected to his excessive guilt about his own perceived "wrongs"?

2. What seemed uncanny about the killer's cool, calm demeanor?

3. In what way was Trench's appeal to the masses who would be needed to help compile the Oxford English Dictionary democratic?

4. Why does the author suggest that Minor moved from his initial area of residence in London, St James Square, to Lambeth Marsh?

5. What effect could the tragic death of his daughter have had on Murray's diligence in working on the Oxford English Dictionary?

6. What aspects of the Latin-English dictionaries provided impetus for the makers of the Oxford English Dictionary to make their own English dictionary?

7. What effect could it have had on logophiles to learn that Samuel Johnson had imposed limits on the history of the definitions of words in his dictionary?

8. Why might the author have defined the word "protagonist" in such depth?

9. In regards to Trench's speech, what did he view each word as having? What must be charted for each word?

10. What can be surmised about the author's intention by naming his first chapter, " The Dead of Night in Lambeth Marsh"?

(see the answer keys)

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