Total No. of Questions 12] [Total No. of Pages 02
M.A. (ENGLISH) DEGREE EXAMINATION, MAY 2018
First Year
ENGLISH
History of the English Language
Time 3 Hours Maximum Marks :70
Questions in Unit-I are compulsory.
Answer two questions from Unit-II and Two from Unit-III.
UNIT I
Q1) Correct Five of the following sentence and identify the unacceptable
features. x 2 10)
My father knows well to teach English.
I have returned all the books to the library yesterday.
I waited for you since 9 o'clock in the morning.
James is suffering from fever since yesterday.
Neither Ann nor Mary have arrived.
Each man and each woman have the right to vote.
Walking along the road, a bus ran over the old man.
He is studying hard for the last two weeks.
Q2) Distinguish between the following pairs of words. x 2 10)
Hair Heir.
Dye Die.
Allusion Illusion.
Female Feminine.
Momentary Momentory.
UNIT II x 121/2 25)
Q3) Write an essay on the French element in English language
Q4) Discuss Verner's Law and Grimm's Law.
Q5) Give an account of the Germanic family of languages and show how
English is related to the other Germanic languages.
Q6) Explain the processes of word formation.
Q7) Write short notes on two of the following:
Latin loan words.
The Great Vowel Shift.
Ablaut.
Standard English.
UNIT III x 121/2 25)
Q8) Explain briefly any THREE of the following process of word formation.
Compounding.
Derivation.
Affixes.
Onomatopoeia.
Portmanteau.
Prefixes.
Q9) Write short notes on any THREE of the following processes of semantic change.
Generalisation.
Association of ideas.
Euphemism.
Popular misunderstanding.
Reversal of meaning.
Loss of distinctive colouring.
Q10) Bring out the differences between American and British English.
Q11) Write an essay on Chaucer's contribution to the English language.
Q12) Write short notes on TWO of the following:
Coinages.
Dr. Johnson's Dictionary.
Language as a mirror of progress.
Old English inflections.
Spelling Reform.