A-Level English Introductory Quiz

Question 1

Which language has influenced English vocabulary the most?

Accepted Answer

French

Question 2

What language family does English belong to?

Accepted Answer

Germanic

Question 3

Which dialect of Old English became dominant in writing?

Accepted Answer

Wessex

Question 4

Old English is almost unrecognisable to modern English speakers.

Accepted Answer

True

Question 5

Early Modern English introduced complex punctuation marks like commas and semicolons.

Accepted Answer

True

Question 6

The Great Vowel Shift significantly changed English pronunciation.

Accepted Answer

True

Question 7

Which author is known as the 'Father of English Literature'?

Accepted Answer

Geoffrey Chaucer

Question 8

What year was Samuel Johnson’s dictionary published?

Accepted Answer

1755

Question 9

What event in 1066 significantly changed the English language?

Accepted Answer

The Norman Conquest

Question 10

Which of these famous writers is correctly matched with their linguistic periods.

Accepted Answer

Austen → Modern English, Chaucer → Middle English

Question 11

Shakespeare invented over 1,700 words still used today.

Accepted Answer

True

Question 12

Middle English used different spellings for the same word depending on the writer.

Accepted Answer

True

Question 13

English is a purely Germanic language.

Accepted Answer

False

Question 14

Which of these is a word borrowed into English from Latin?

Accepted Answer

Bonus

Question 15

What approximate percentage of current English words are of French origin?

Accepted Answer

30%

Question 16

What is the oldest surviving English epic poem?

Accepted Answer

Beowulf

Question 17

What does 'Modern English' begin with?

Accepted Answer

The Renaissance

Question 18

Which invention helped standardise English spelling?

Accepted Answer

The printing press

Questions 18