The History of the English language
Explore the History of the English Language
Test your knowledge about the fascinating evolution of the English language through this comprehensive quiz! Delve into its origins, variations, and significant phonetic changes.
Engage with questions covering:
- The number of English speakers worldwide
- Historical influences on the language
- The characteristics of Old and Middle English
- The impact of the Great Vowel Shift
Overall, how many English speakers (native and non-native) are there in the world?
Over 2 billion
330 million
470 million
There are more native speakers of English in Canada than there are in Australia.
True
False
English is the only official language of the European Union.
True
False
Irish English is one of the major varieties of English
True
False
In which of these South American countries English is an official language?
Brazil
Argentina
Guyana
Venezuela
Proto-Indo-European is the ancient common ancestor of English and Polish
True
False
North Germanic is an ancestor of English.
True
False
What are the approximate dates between which Old English was used?
55 BC to 5th centory
1066 until the late 15th century
5th century to the late 11th century
How many tenses were there in Old English?
12
3
2
Which of these languages did not influence Old English?
Norman French
Latin
Old Norse
Celtic
Progressive (-ing) forms were among the new kinds of grammatical construction in Middle English.
True
False
In Middle English there were no variations in the spelling of particular words.
True
False
Which one is not true about the Great Vowel Shift?
The term was coined by the Danish linguist Otto Jespersen
It was a radical change in pronunciation
It started very gradually
One of its possible causes was social mobility after the Black Death
Long vowel sounds began to be made lower and further backward in the mouth
We would be able to understand Shakespeare's English.
True
False
The additions to English vocabulary during the Elizabethan Era were forced on the English.
True
False
Some 19th century scholars believed that in the future American English and British English would become mutually unintelligible.
True
False
What is the difference between a pidgin and a creole?
Only pidgin can be a first language
Only creole can be a first language
Only pidgin is a blend of two or more languages
When used to denote the language, "English" doesn't have the plural form.
True
False
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