PrepTest 149, Section 2, Question 3
The following passage is adapted from an article(467 more words not shown)
The author mentions the words(19 more words not shown)
- Ademonstrate the extent(8 more words not shown)
- Billustrate how Chinese(13 more words not shown)
- Cexplain why native(10 more words not shown)
- Dshow why Chinatown(8 more words not shown)
- Eexemplify the ways(14 more words not shown)
Reading the passage
They're examples. Dang-tang shows an English word's sound being borrowed; gong-ngihn ngiht shows English meanings being translated. Predict an answer about how American English influences the local vocabulary. That is the job of these two examples, even though the larger argument asks whether the resulting vocabulary establishes a new dialect.
Working the answers
- A
“Dominate” goes much further than influence. The author says the language's core remains intact and the new vocabulary is peripheral. Two examples of English influence don't establish that English terms take over the language.
- B
These examples don't demonstrate easy communication across different dialects. In fact, the final paragraph rejects the idea that sharing local terms guarantees that result.
- C
Why can speakers of the same traditional dialect usually understand one another? They share the underlying language and can explain or avoid unfamiliar terms. The examples illustrate the new words; they don't show that a newcomer automatically understands those words.
- D
This gives the examples a job opposite to the argument's direction. The author acknowledges the new vocabulary while challenging the claim that Chinatown Chinese is a distinct dialect.
- ECorrect
“Exemplify” means give examples, matching our prediction. Borrowing the sound of downtown and translating labor plus day illustrate two ways English influences Chinese-American vocabulary. The answer describes what those particular sentences do, without turning their limited examples into a claim that English dominates.
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