LING 115 - Linguistics Midterm #2 with
correct answers 100% 2026
Which of the following is an s-curve?
a. Ten people adopt a new linguistic feature, then twenty more, then forty more after that.
b. Forty people adopt a new linguistic feature, then twenty more, then ten after that.
c. Forty people adopt a new linguistic feature, then ten more, then twenty more after that.
d. Ten people adopt a new linguistic feature, then forty more, then twenty after that. - Correct
Answers d. Ten people adopt a new linguistic feature, then forty more, then twenty after that.
Which of the following CAN'T be described by an s-curve?
a. the diffusion of a sound change through the words a speaker knows
b. the diffusion of a disease through a community
c. the diffusion of a sound change through the speakers of a language
d. the diffusion of pollution in a body of water - Correct Answers d. the diffusion of pollution in a
body of water
Once a change begins in a language, it can't be stopped.
True
False - Correct Answers False
If a sound change happened in English such that all instances of "th" became pronounced as
"d," the word "that" would be pronounced as "dat" before the word "thereby" was pronounced
as "dereby."
,True
False - Correct Answers True
The language of Napkinish is experiencing a change. Speakers, starting in the city of Forktown,
have stopped using the "-ippa" suffix in the past tense. In Forktown, the words "tullippa,"
"loppippa," and "bonippa" are all now pronounced as "tull," "lopp," and "bon" in the past tense.
In the town of Spoonville thirty miles away, "tullippa" is pronounced as "tull," and "bonippa" is
pronounced as "bon," but "loppippa" must still be pronounced "loppippa." Bowlville is another
town sixty miles away from Forktown on the other side of Spoonville. (You have to drive
through Spoonville to get to Bowlville in fact.) What must be true in Bowlville?
a. The people in Bowlville definitely do NOT say "lopp" instead of "loppippa."
b. The people in Bowlville definitely say "lopp" instead of "loppippa."
c. The people in Bowlville definitely say "bon" instead of "bonippa."
d. The language change definitely hasn't reached Bowlville. - Correct Answers a. The people in
Bowlville definitely do NOT say "lopp" instead of "loppippa."
An isogloss is a line between two dialects.
True
False - Correct Answers False
It has become common in some varieties of English recently to say "las" instead of "last" (as in:
"He came in las"). Which of the following is true of this change?
a. It is the result of speakers being too lazy to include the final consonant.
b. It is the result of a predictable change whereby speakers reduce the markedness of the
language.
c. It is evidence that English has become less elegant than how it was spoken 100 years ago.
,d. It shows that English is improving towards being more logical. - Correct Answers b. It is the
result of a predictable change whereby speakers reduce the markedness of the language.
What does the Benrath Line mark?
a. Whether speakers of German say "k" or "ch" on words such as "ich" and "machen."
b. Which dialect of German speakers use.
c. Whether the speakers of German are considered to be low, high, or middle class.
d. Whether speakers of French were living in the area. - Correct Answers a. Whether speakers of
German say "k" or "ch" on words such as "ich" and "machen."
If speakers of a variety are unsure about a linguistic feature (ex: they can't quite decide if the
plural of "cactus" is "cacti" or "cactuses"), it's probably because that linguistic feature is in the
process of changing.
True
False - Correct Answers True
Why do most speakers of American English pronounce "cursory" with three syllables and
"every" with two syllables?
a. "Cursory" is very hard to pronounce with two syllables.
b. It's the proper way to pronounce the words, and native speakers learned these
pronunciations in school.
c. Losing a syllable in "cursory" would make it sound too much like another word.
d. "Every" is a more common word than "cursory." - Correct Answers d. "Every" is a more
common word than "cursory."
, What is Labov 1963 about?
a. a language change because of pressures from above
b. a language change because of pressures from below
c. a language change that shows the s-curve
d. a variety that hasn't ever changed - Correct Answers b. a language change because of
pressures from below
The youth on Martha's Vineyard were the most likely to use the new vowels.
True
False - Correct Answers False
The people who lived up-island on Martha's Vineyard were the most likely to use the new
vowels.
True
False - Correct Answers True
We are more likely to be aware of changes we make in our language due to pressures from
above than the changes we make due to pressures from below.
True
False - Correct Answers True
If I change my speech to sound friendlier, then I have changed my speech in response to
pressures from below.
correct answers 100% 2026
Which of the following is an s-curve?
a. Ten people adopt a new linguistic feature, then twenty more, then forty more after that.
b. Forty people adopt a new linguistic feature, then twenty more, then ten after that.
c. Forty people adopt a new linguistic feature, then ten more, then twenty more after that.
d. Ten people adopt a new linguistic feature, then forty more, then twenty after that. - Correct
Answers d. Ten people adopt a new linguistic feature, then forty more, then twenty after that.
Which of the following CAN'T be described by an s-curve?
a. the diffusion of a sound change through the words a speaker knows
b. the diffusion of a disease through a community
c. the diffusion of a sound change through the speakers of a language
d. the diffusion of pollution in a body of water - Correct Answers d. the diffusion of pollution in a
body of water
Once a change begins in a language, it can't be stopped.
True
False - Correct Answers False
If a sound change happened in English such that all instances of "th" became pronounced as
"d," the word "that" would be pronounced as "dat" before the word "thereby" was pronounced
as "dereby."
,True
False - Correct Answers True
The language of Napkinish is experiencing a change. Speakers, starting in the city of Forktown,
have stopped using the "-ippa" suffix in the past tense. In Forktown, the words "tullippa,"
"loppippa," and "bonippa" are all now pronounced as "tull," "lopp," and "bon" in the past tense.
In the town of Spoonville thirty miles away, "tullippa" is pronounced as "tull," and "bonippa" is
pronounced as "bon," but "loppippa" must still be pronounced "loppippa." Bowlville is another
town sixty miles away from Forktown on the other side of Spoonville. (You have to drive
through Spoonville to get to Bowlville in fact.) What must be true in Bowlville?
a. The people in Bowlville definitely do NOT say "lopp" instead of "loppippa."
b. The people in Bowlville definitely say "lopp" instead of "loppippa."
c. The people in Bowlville definitely say "bon" instead of "bonippa."
d. The language change definitely hasn't reached Bowlville. - Correct Answers a. The people in
Bowlville definitely do NOT say "lopp" instead of "loppippa."
An isogloss is a line between two dialects.
True
False - Correct Answers False
It has become common in some varieties of English recently to say "las" instead of "last" (as in:
"He came in las"). Which of the following is true of this change?
a. It is the result of speakers being too lazy to include the final consonant.
b. It is the result of a predictable change whereby speakers reduce the markedness of the
language.
c. It is evidence that English has become less elegant than how it was spoken 100 years ago.
,d. It shows that English is improving towards being more logical. - Correct Answers b. It is the
result of a predictable change whereby speakers reduce the markedness of the language.
What does the Benrath Line mark?
a. Whether speakers of German say "k" or "ch" on words such as "ich" and "machen."
b. Which dialect of German speakers use.
c. Whether the speakers of German are considered to be low, high, or middle class.
d. Whether speakers of French were living in the area. - Correct Answers a. Whether speakers of
German say "k" or "ch" on words such as "ich" and "machen."
If speakers of a variety are unsure about a linguistic feature (ex: they can't quite decide if the
plural of "cactus" is "cacti" or "cactuses"), it's probably because that linguistic feature is in the
process of changing.
True
False - Correct Answers True
Why do most speakers of American English pronounce "cursory" with three syllables and
"every" with two syllables?
a. "Cursory" is very hard to pronounce with two syllables.
b. It's the proper way to pronounce the words, and native speakers learned these
pronunciations in school.
c. Losing a syllable in "cursory" would make it sound too much like another word.
d. "Every" is a more common word than "cursory." - Correct Answers d. "Every" is a more
common word than "cursory."
, What is Labov 1963 about?
a. a language change because of pressures from above
b. a language change because of pressures from below
c. a language change that shows the s-curve
d. a variety that hasn't ever changed - Correct Answers b. a language change because of
pressures from below
The youth on Martha's Vineyard were the most likely to use the new vowels.
True
False - Correct Answers False
The people who lived up-island on Martha's Vineyard were the most likely to use the new
vowels.
True
False - Correct Answers True
We are more likely to be aware of changes we make in our language due to pressures from
above than the changes we make due to pressures from below.
True
False - Correct Answers True
If I change my speech to sound friendlier, then I have changed my speech in response to
pressures from below.
