Good morning, good afternoon, and good evening! No matter at what time you are taking the quiz. I am happy to see you here. It is a perfect time to check your American English knowledge. With the 20 questions, we will evaluate how much you know about one of the most popular types of English.
I think everyone I have ever met speaks English. I started studying it in kindergarten, and I think I speak it fluently. But I have got this feeling as long as it is American or British English. Otherwise, I am lost. I remember exactly when I went to Australia for the first time. I visited my friend that I met years before. We did not talk face to face much before my visit. It was mostly an online friendship. When she was speaking slowly I could talk to her easily. I was in the biggest trouble when I had to talk with her Dad- a native Australian. I needed a translator. Otherwise, I was smiling and hoping that what he said was not a question.
That situation opened my eyes and showed me how different can be English in different places of the world. Do you know how many different English Dialects are there in the world? There are more than 160 of them. And the number increases all the time. In every country where English is the official language, the type is different. It can be different in terms of single words that they call the same thing. Also, it can differ by the grammatical. But, what I understood in Australia- they differ in terms of accent. And it can bring more trouble than anything else. Then what are the most popular dialects in the world? The most important ones come from Australia, Jamaica, the United States of America, the United Kingdom, India, and Kenya.
The most impact has obviously been American English and British English. For now, more popular is America English. That is due to big companies such as Microsoft. They use American English which makes it more commonly used on the Internet. Anyway, it all depends on the school or even the books teachers choose for us. I will tell you some main differences between these two dialects. For example, in American English, it is common to use past tenses when they speak about the past, even if it affects the present. For British English, present perfect would be used in that case. Another difference is that British English allows us to use plural forms for singular words that refer to a group of people. In American English, we could always use singular ones (my family is…). Some words are special for both of these types. The world “shall” does not exist in American English. They prefer saying “should,” “how about,” or other phrases. A similar thing happens about the word “have.” It is not really used in American English. They rather use “take.” In British English, we can use both of them in almost all cases (take a shower, holiday…). I am also sure you know about the past form of the word “get.” British people would use “got,” and Americas would choose “gotten.” There are many differences, as you can see, and these are only the most common ones.
We also have to mention the most interesting facts about American English that is the subject of today’s quiz.
With the first one, many of you can be surprised. Even though American English is the most popular English dialect in the world, it is not the official language of any country. Yes, you are reading correctly. Not many people know that the United States of America does not have an official language. Then how did it start to be used? It all started with the communication of native American people. That is very interesting, but most of the states of America do not have English names. Many of them are called in a specific way by Native American tribes that used to live there.
America English got even more popular when the Internet became that famous source. The United States of America is home to many trends, music videos, movies, and tv series. That is why more and more people speak this dialect. Many strangers can understand better American English than British English.
I think that now you are ready to take part in this challenge. With the 20 questions I have prepared, you will have to choose which answer corresponds to American English. Some of the examples are more difficult than others but do not worry. Maybe you are better in another English dialect. I am sure that all of you know some of the correct answers. You can do it. I believe in you all, and I keep my fingers crossed for you. Good luck!
