Tongue Trivia

Name:

Date:

Instructions: Fun facts about languages, alphabets, and linguistics

1.
Approximately how many languages are spoken in the world today?
A
About 500
B
About 2,000
C
About 7,000
D
About 15,000
2.
Which language has the most native speakers in the world?
A
Hindi
B
English
C
Spanish
D
Mandarin Chinese
3.
How many letters are in the English alphabet?
A
30
B
26
C
28
D
24
4.
Which language is written from right to left?
A
Greek
B
Japanese
C
Thai
D
Arabic
5.
What is the most commonly spoken language family in the world?
A
Niger-Congo
B
Afro-Asiatic
C
Indo-European
D
Sino-Tibetan
6.
The Khmer (Cambodian) alphabet holds what distinction?
A
It is the oldest alphabet
B
It is the smallest alphabet
C
It has the most letters of any alphabet
D
It has no vowels
7.
What is a 'lingua franca'?
A
A dead language
B
The first language ever spoken
C
The French language
D
A language used as a common language between speakers of different languages
8.
Which country has the most official languages?
A
Zimbabwe
B
Bolivia
C
India
D
South Africa
9.
What is the study of the origin and history of words called?
A
Etymology
B
Morphology
C
Entomology
D
Phonology
10.
What type of writing system does Chinese primarily use?
A
Alphabetic
B
Logographic (characters represent words or concepts)
C
Runic
D
Syllabic
11.
The Rosetta Stone was key to deciphering which ancient writing system?
A
Linear B
B
Cuneiform
C
Sanskrit
D
Egyptian hieroglyphics
12.
What is the term for a person who speaks multiple languages?
A
Translator
B
Bilingual
C
Polyglot
D
Linguist
13.
Which constructed language was created in 1887 to serve as an easy-to-learn international auxiliary language?
A
Esperanto
B
Volapuk
C
Elvish
D
Klingon
14.
What is the most translated document in the world?
A
Harry Potter
B
The Bible
C
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights
D
The Quran
15.
Braille is a writing system for the visually impaired. How many raised dots form each Braille cell?
A
8
B
10
C
6
D
4

Answer Key

Question 1

C. About 7,000

Question 2

D. Mandarin Chinese

Question 3

B. 26

Question 4

D. Arabic

Question 5

C. Indo-European

Question 6

C. It has the most letters of any alphabet

Question 7

D. A language used as a common language between speakers of different languages

Question 8

A. Zimbabwe

Question 9

A. Etymology

Question 10

B. Logographic (characters represent words or concepts)

Question 11

D. Egyptian hieroglyphics

Question 12

C. Polyglot

Question 13

A. Esperanto

Question 14

C. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights

Question 15

C. 6

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