General Background
When did the Early Modern English period begin and end?
A) 1066–1475
B) 1475–1660
C) 1660–1800
D) 1500–1700
B) 1475–1660
What was the global change in vowel pronunciation (14th–16th c.)?
A) Great Consonant Shift
B) Vowel Shortening
C) Great Vowel Shift
D) Palatalization
C) Great Vowel Shift
Most nouns unified to have which plural ending in this period?
A) -en
B) -n
C) -es
D) -i
C) -es
Which language was used for scholarly work until the 16th century?
A) French
B) Greek
C) Latin
D) Italian
C) Latin
From which language did English borrow the words "violin", "duo", and "opera"?
A) French
B) Spanish
C) Italian
D) Dutch
C) Italian
Which dialect was the basis for the National English language.
A) Northern
B) Kentish
C) London
D) West Midland
C) London
Why didn't the Great Vowel Shift affect spelling?
A) Spelling wasn't invented
B) Spelling was already fixed
C) People were illiterate
D) It was forbidden
B) Spelling was already fixed
Which verbal ending for the 2nd person singular was lost?
A) -s
B) -st
C) -th
D) -ing
B) -st
Violin", "opera", and "balcony" were borrowed from:
A) Spanish
B) Italian
C) French
D) Dutch
B) Italian
The word "pyjamas" entered the English lexicon during the Late ModE period due to:
A) The Industrial Revolution
B) Colonialism
C) Medical advances
D) Religious reforms
B) Colonialism
Until which century was English spoken only in Britain?
A) 15th
B) 16th
C) 17th
D) 18th
C) 17th
How did the pronunciation of "knee" [kne:] change?
A) It became [ni:]
B) It became [kne:i]
C)It became [ne:i]
D) It stayed [kne:]
A) It became [ni:]
"The most worst" is an example of:
A) Double negative
B) Double comparison
C) Unmarked genitive
D) Analytic form
B) Double comparison
Creating a verb from a noun (e.g., "to skin") is called:
A) Compounding
B) Affixation
C) Conversion
D) Borrowing
C) Conversion
Which King was reigning when the famous Authorized Bible was translated (1604–1611)?
A) King Henry VIII
B) King James I
C) King Charles II
D) Queen Elizabeth I
B) King James I
What appeared in the 16th century to define the strict rules of the language?
A) Dictionaries
B) Grammars
C) Novels
D) Encyclopedias
B) Grammars
The letter "R" tended to do what to the vowels following them (e.g., fer > far)
A) Higher them
B) Lower them
C) Delete them
D) Lengthen them
B) Lower them
When did syntactic punctuation finally get introduced?
A) 15th c
B) 16th c.
C) 17th c
D) 18th c.
C) 17th c
Words like "horse mill" and "wood beetle" are examples of:
A) Compounding
B) Conversion
C) Borrowing
D) Shortening
A) Compounding
Who compiled the "Book of Common Prayer" in 1549?
A) William Shakespeare
B) Samuel Johnson
C) Thomas Cranmer
D) Christopher Marlowe
C) Thomas Cranmer
: English spread worldwide due to colonies and what other historical event?
A) Industrial Revolution
B) Great Geographical discoveries
C) World War I
D) The Renaissance
B) Great Geographical discoveries
Which new sound appeared before "r" in words like "first" and "turn"?
A) [u:]
B) [æ]
C) [ə:]
D) [ai]
C) [ə:]
What happened to the 3rd person singular ending "-th"?
A) It became mandatory
B) It was replaced by "-s"
C) It became silent
D) It changed to "-ed"
B) It was replaced by "-s"
Which were the most productive noun suffixes?
A) -en, -ize
B) -ness, -er
C) -ly, -y
D) -able, -ic
B) -ness, -er
What is the primary word order in Modern English?
A) VSO (Verb-Subject-Object)
B) SOV (Subject-Object-Verb)
C) SVO (Subject-Verb-Object)
D) OSV (Object-Subject-Verb)
C) SVO (Subject-Verb-Object)